The Bet
by DragonGirl420
Summary: (Daryl Dixon x Reader) After living in the woods for a year, you make your way to the prison, only to find your childhood friend Maggie Greene living there. After getting to know the survivors, one person, in particular, catches your eye. The bet you make with Maggie in regards to the archer is one that will change the course of your life forever.
1. Chapter 1

The heat had been oppressive over the last few days, with no rain or clouds in sight. Off on the west side of the yard Rick, Daryl, Glenn and Tyrese were trying to add support to the fences while you, Maggie and Beth sat under the kitchen canopy taking refugee from the blazing sun.

Maggie and Beth were arguing with each other over something stupid that had happened years ago and you had your gaze set firmly to the west. Sweat was slowly dripping down your brow with the occasional salty drop landing in your eye. You could feel the sweat pooling in your bra, as well as other places, but that could just be because of your current view.

"Hey, Y/N, I'm right, aren't I? You were there… tell her," Maggie said and threw Beth an indignant look.

"Huh?" you asked lazily, your attention still half directed at watching the guys fix the fence. Well, not all the guys. Just one guy in particular.

Maggie rolled her eyes at you and repeated the question.

"I'm sorry Maggie, I checked out a while ago," you offered her a sorry smile and grabbed a couple more snap peas from the bucket.

Maggie turned and followed your gaze to the fences, her face broke out into a wide grin when she was facing you again.

"Uh… no," she said shaking her head.

"What?" you asked half offended, half confused.

"It's pretty obvious," Beth chimed in with a tone of disgust. "You stare at him constantly. It's kinda creepy."

You dismissed Beth's comment and turned to look back at Maggie. "Has she always been like this?"

"Well, she's always disliked you if that helps," Maggie laughed and raised her eyebrows at Beth.

You had known the Greene girls from years before when your family lived on the next farm over. Having hung out with their older brother Sean, you and Maggie had become quick friends but Beth never seemed to approve of your friendship with her siblings.

When you stumbled upon the prison several weeks before, you never thought you would find someone you had known, much less people that you were close too.

"That ain't nothin' new Maggie. I know how much Bethy hates me," you reached over and playfully pinched her cheek.

"Ugh," Beth said standing up getting ready to walk away, "I have to go get Judith. And don't call me Bethy, only daddy gets to do that."

You and Maggie watched her walk away, and you turned your attention back to the guys by the fence.

"She's right ya know," Maggie say nodding in their direction, "it is pretty obvious how you stare at him and all."

"Well, I am sorry if I can still have appreciation for something so spectacular. Besides, what do you care anyway? You have a man."

"I have a husband," Maggie said flashing the ring Glenn gave her, smiling wide.

"That's the last thing I want Maggie, but I am very happy for you."

"Alright then, what do you want?" She questioned, shrugging her shoulders.

"Not that," you pointed to her rings. "I don't know how you even go about trying to love someone in a world like this. That's way too hard. I guess I just want to have some fun, scratch an itch, ya know?"

"Geez, Y/N!" Maggie exclaimed, eyes wide but smiling.

"So, what's his deal anyway?" You asked trying to ignore Maggie's reaction, your eyes once again fixed on Daryl's back.

"I dunno, he's kinda quiet and shy. I mean, back on the farm he was different. But after a winter on the road, and then with what we had to go through to get this place… he's changed."

"Yeah, ok great… I meant, like who is he sleeping with?"

Maggie gave you a wide-eyed look again, surprised at your boldness.

"No one that I know of," she said going back to cleaning snap peas. "But, I doubt you would get far with him."

"Why?"

"I dunno, you just don't seem like his type."

"I can change that," you said and felt a grin spread across your face.

"Yeah, Ok. I'll tell you what Y/N… You manage to be the one to tie Dixon down, and I'll do the gardening for a whole month by myself."

You looked at your friend and stuck out a hand to her. "Maggie, hun, you know better than to never dare me to do somethin'. I'll take that bet, happily."

xxx

Early the next morning you were woken up by the sound of bangs and clunks coming from down the cell block. Wiping your eyes of sleep, you got up and peeked out of the curtain. Daryl was pacing in and out of his cell, hands on hips mumbling to himself.

You couldn't make it out completely, but picked up a couple words, "Fuck is it?" he growled and stormed out of the cell block. His unclothed arms that emerged from the cut off shirt were bulging in rage and sweat; his normal easy swagger was now fueled by anger, which somehow made him even sexier.

Since you were already awake, and your roommate was snoring loudly, you decided to get up and out early and head out to the laundry to get some of your work done. After throwing on some clothes, you caught sight of Beth near the wash tubs and wrinkled your nose at the thought of her being the first one you spoke to that morning.

As you approached her, you realized now why Daryl was in a fit of rage. Beth had his vest about to go in the wash, and given his demeanor earlier, you figured she didn't ask when she took it.

"Hey Beth," you sang cheerily, "Um, whatcha doin'?"

"Washing Daryl's vest," she said not looking at you.

"Ya know he's flipping the fuck out lookin' for it," you said trying to look at her, but the sun was blinding you.

"He is? I didn't mean anything by it, I just… it was so dirty. I was just trying to help."

"Lemme have it, I'll bring it back and tell him I found it out here. Won't tell him it was you."

Beth finally looked at you as though she was a child being chastised for being bad. Sheepishly, she handed you the vest before it touched the water.

"You really won't tell him?" she asked, eyes begging you to keep your word.

"I promise. Now, why don't you go see if Rick's up, I'm sure he'll need you to care for Judy today."

She gave you one last untrusting glance before turning and walking away. Gently folding Daryl's vest, you hurried back to your cell and stuffed it into your gear bag. Maggie's bet was fresh in your mind from the day before, and you felt determined to make this the day that you won a month off of gardening.


	2. Chapter 2

With the pack slung over your shoulder, you set off to find Maggie. She and Glenn were sitting at one of the outdoor tables near the barbecue having breakfast. As you approached them, they were snuggled close and sharing a private giggle. You couldn't help but roll your eyes at them, but also feel the slightest twinge of jealousy.

"Hey, Maggie," you said sidling up to the table, "you got a sec?"

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Um, tell me again about that place… you know where you and Glen used ta…" you raised your eye browns quickly with a little smirk, and both their faces instantly flushed red.

"You told her about that?" Glenn asked his wife, poking her in the ribs.

"She's one of my best friends, of course, I did," Maggie said to him and looked back to you. "We don't go out there anymore, but it's to the southwest, maybe half a day's hike. Why?"

"Oh, no reason really. Just have to start working on getting that free month of gardenin' outta ya."

You offered Maggie a wink, blew her an animated kiss and set off to try and get the archer to follow you out of the gates. Maggie jumped up, grabbing your arm before you could leave the courtyard.

"Hey," she said pulling you close, "I tried to grab you last night after dinner, but you had already left."

"What's up?" you asked, half amused by the gleeful look in her eye.

"When you were helpin' Carol hand out dinner plates last night, I caught him staring at you when you bent over to pick up the extra plates."

An embarrassed grin played at the corners of your mouth. "Really?"

"I'm tellin' ya. I watched that man staring at your ass for a solid thirty seconds," Maggie giggled and turned backward towards Glenn. Maggie threw her arms up in the air, "So maybe I was wrong! Never happened before, but there's a first time for everythin'!"

xxx

Daryl was in the alley of the courtyard working on one of the cars. You placed the pack on the ground and watched him for a moment before he saw you.

"You need somethin'?" he asked, squinting one eye because of the bright, hot sun. It was barely 8 a.m. but his hair was already soaked from sweat and hanging in his eyes.

You leaned the side of your hip against the car, kicked one boot over the other and crossed your arms right beneath your breasts, inadvertently giving Daryl a better look at them breaching the scoop neck of your tank top.

"Was gonna go hunt, wanna come?" you tried to ask as nonchalantly as possible, though to your ears you felt like you were begging him.

"Where?" He asked grabbing the rag from the back of his jeans and cleaning off his hands.

"Was going to head out through the tombs into the woods. See what may be lingering out there."

Daryl closed the hood of the car and gave you a once over with narrowed eyes.

"You been huntin' before?"

"Mhmm, with my dad. I am not the best hunter, but I can handle myself. Wouldn't hurt to have a pro along for support though," you said in your sweetest voice.

"Alright. I'll meet ya down in the tombs in five minutes. Let me just grab my shit." Daryl turned to head back into the prison. Before walking through the door, you saw him pause and quickly glance back at you over his shoulder.

It was enough to make the day's heat feel like nothing compared to what you were feeling deep in that part of you that needed him to scratch your itch.


	3. Chapter 3

Shortly after the height of the afternoon passed, Daryl led you through a thick gathering of trees that gave way to a dirt path. Without a word, he motioned for you to look down at the tracks imprinted in the mud.

He was on the trail of a deer, more than one if you were seeing it right. You were just hoping that both you and Daryl could get what you were both chasing.

A quick survey of the trail led you to the cabin that Maggie and Glenn had used during their early days at the prison. The quickening of your heart must have been loud, because Daryl paused and turned to look at you.

"You alright?" he asked, concern written on his face.

"Yeah, just hot," you said and smiled.

"Might be able to do something about that," he said and used his chin to point ahead to the small pond behind the cabin.

The water was gloriously chilled for having been cooking in the Georgia sun. Splashing it on your face was nearly orgasmic, and you didn't dismiss the sideways glances Daryl cast your way as your poured handful after handful over your head.

"We should check out the cabin," you said, "see if anyone left anything good behind."

Daryl nodded. "Alright, let's do it."

 _Yes_ , you thought to yourself, _let's_.

xxx

When you were both satisfied it was walker free, Daryl told you to look through the cabinets and rooms to see what you could find. He was going to go circle around the pond for any more signs of the deer that passed through.

The second he left, you got to work putting your plan in motion. Rifling through the cabinets as asked, you discovered some of the things Maggie and Glenn had left behind. There were a dozen small candles, half a bottle of whiskey and a few cans of soup in the back of one cabinet. In the second, smaller room, you found a small mattress sitting on an old wrought-iron frame and a stack of folded blankets in the corner.

You nodded to yourself and got busy getting the cabin ready to try and seduce Daryl. Not knowing if it would really work, you recognized the fact that if it didn't, you may never be able to show your face around him again. But you thought that it would be worth the chance for a night with Daryl.

xxx

The cabin door opened about twenty minutes later and you exhaled nervously through pursed lips. You watched as Daryl walked into the room, crossbow slung over his shoulder, eyes darting around trying to find you. He finally looked up and saw you standing in the middle of the room.

Daryl stopped moving when he noticed you wearing nothing but a pair of black lace panties and his winged vest. His breath hitched for a moment before exhaling between parted lips. Daryl bit his lower lip, his blue eyes burning a hole right through you.

"I, uh, found your vest," you said, seductively tracing a finger along the inside edge that just barely covered your breast.

Daryl still didn't speak. His chest rose and fell heavily, a low growl purred from deep within his chest. He had you at a disadvantage because you didn't know his signs. You were half worried he would be more pissed about the vest, than about the fact that you were trying to seduce him.

"Do you want it back?" you asked taking a tentative step towards him. "I didn't take it, just so you know. But I did find it."

"Where?" he grunted finally, his eyes still firmly fixed on yours.

"In the laundry. Someone musta grabbed it by accident," your doubt was growing, maybe this wasn't the way to go about trying to entice Daryl. Maybe Maggie was right the first time and he just wasn't interested.

"Why didn't ya give it back then?"

"Thought this might be more fun," you took another step so you were less than an arm's length from him.

"Out here, in the middle of all this?" he said, whipping his finger into the air. "This why you asked me to come hunt?"

"Certainly couldn't try something like this back at the prison." Deciding to try one last bold move before throwing in the towel, you reached out and gently played with the collar of his shirt. "Could I?" you asked looking up at him with eyes that begged for him to reciprocate what you were feeling.

"You're a crazy ass girl, you know that?" Daryl chastised, but didn't move away from you, nor did he try to remove your hand from his shirt.

"I've been told that once or twice. But, if this kind of crazy is too much…"

Daryl's hand brushed against the place where your shoulder became exposed through the arm of his vest. You watched his face as he studied that part of you and wanted desperately to know what he was thinking.

His touch was a blast of heat on your skin. The air in the cabin was growing thicker with the tension and just when you thought he wouldn't ever decide, he did.

Daryl rested his hand on the soft spot at the place where your neck meets your chest. His large, rough fingers snaking up your neck and gingerly wrapping around.

"You never answered me, Daryl… do you want your vest back?" you tilted your head to feel more of his hand on your skin.

"No," he growled.

Still holding your neck, Daryl leaned in and came within an inch of his lips pressing to yours. His nose circling yours, eyes serious and fixed on you.

"Whatcha want from me girl?" He snarled, his breath hot on your face, his body poised and ready to pounce, but you were still unsure if was to fight or fuck.

You just shrugged and narrowed your eyes at him. You reached up and ran your hand up through the back of his hair. Having had enough of the uncertainty, you pushed his lips into yours and kissed him.

Daryl's grip on your neck slipped, his hand sliding down the space between your breasts that the vest didn't cover. It felt like he left a trail of electricity and when his hand came to rest on your stomach. You felt him lightly slip his hand around your waist under the hem of the vest; his fingertips just barely brushing up against your skin.

Even though you kissed him first, it was Daryl that made the boldest move of all. His hand slid down your back, and over the silk that covered your ass. When your body responded, his tongue slid between your lips and plunged into your mouth.

Daryl kissed you hard enough to push your whole body back up against the windows that looked over the pond. As his broad chest and hips pressed into yours, you wrapped your arms around him, letting your hands explore his lower back, and eventually down to his ass.

He pulled back from you, his eyes fixated on your face.

"This is what you want?" he asked in a growling whisper. "This what we came all the way out here for?"

The damp heat growing between your legs ached for him. You couldn't muster up any words, just a nod paired with pleading eyes.

"Why?" His face was barely inches from yours.

"Because," you said, not wanting him to stop, "you drive me fucking crazy and I just need to know what it would be like to be with you."

You licked and bit at your lower lip waiting for him to decide if your answer was good enough.

"Damn girl, you don't gotta lure me out to the woods. It's not like I ain't thought about it."

Your stomach lurched at the notion that he thought about you in the same way. Leaning forward your lips found his again. There was no hesitation this time as Daryl dove into you, sucking and slurping on your tongue and mouth with his; a full-on assault due to a long period of pent-up frustrations from both of you.

Daryl's hands slowly pushed the vest from your shoulders, but he never stopped kissing you. When it hit the floor, and your breasts were fully exposed to him, his lips left your mouth and began to attack your neck down to your collarbone. His rough hands wrapping around you and toying with the edge of your panties.

"I want you," you whispered as your tongue teased the outline of his ear, "I've wanted you since I met you."

Daryl purred, grabbed your ass with both hands and lifted you up against the windows. He buried his face in your breasts, giving each one attention with his tongue and teeth. You could feel the hardness of him begging to break free and pushing into your panties.

Just as you went to reach down, to relieve him of his pants, Daryl slowly released you, allowing your feet to touch the floor. He went to work unbuckling his belt, letting his pants and boxers fall to the floor. Your breath hitched in your throat as the full length of his cock sprung free.

His eyes never left your body. Daryl didn't bother with the buttons of his shirt as he ripped it off over his head, throwing it across the room without care. His hands were on you, yanking down the underwear and nearly pushing you out of them.

"Tell me again," he demanded as he simultaneously turned you around and pulled you into him so you could feel his cock pressing into your ass.

"I want you to fuck me, Daryl… please," you moaned. "Please…"

He had one arm wrapped around your shoulders, his grip on you just a bit too tight. His other hand reaching down into the warmth of your folds. Upon feeling how ready you were for him, he bit down on your neck, teasing you with his tongue while his fingers went to work deep inside you.

Pressing your hands against the windows, trying to suppress the scream of pleasure rising in you, you felt his breath hot on your ear, "Don't…" he whispered, "I wanna hear you scream."

Daryl's fingers found their way inside you, and as you rocked your body back and forth you did what he asked.

"Fuck!" You screamed, making his shaft throb harder against you.

Your body began to quake, ready to cum for him as his fingers flicked, pulled and pounded into you. As if sensing your orgasm, Daryl quickly pulled his hand away.

"Not yet," he said, a soft buzz in your ear.

"Don't fucking tease me, I am not a patient woman," you smirked and turned your head to see his face over your shoulder. His mouth found yours and he devoured you again, spinning you around and lifting you up against the windows.

Without warning, Daryl let his cock slip into you and immediately moaned at the sensation. His face buried in your neck, your one hand tangled in his wild hair the other holding onto his back for dear life.

Daryl rocked against you, with each thrust finding deeper and deeper places of you to touch. He was breathing heavy, grunting weighty breaths into your ear, licking and biting at you each time your fingers dug into his skin.

"Oh God," you screamed as he reached the spot that caused your body to spasm uncontrollably. He lifted his head and looked at you through the tendrils of hair obscuring his face, a smile playing on his lips.

"You getting' what you want now girl?" He continued to pull you into him, pounding against your hips as you felt your body exploded.

"Holy shit Daryl… don't…" the words wouldn't come as you did, but you didn't want him to stop. He had no intention of stopping.

His hand grabbed your breast and pressed his mouth over your nipple, flicking it with his tongue. A moan escaped you at the feeling of it so soon after completion. The sensation sent little electrical impulses through your body, making you clench your pussy around him as he lunged himself into you.

"Oh fuck, Y/N," he grunted, letting his dominance waver and allowing you to take full advantage.

"Cum for me Daryl," you said in his ear, barely above a whisper. "It's your turn baby, cum for me."

Daryl's grip on you tightened and right before his body came to completion, he brought his mouth back to yours and kissed you deeply. You felt his back and shoulders tense as he came into you, a moan escaping your own lips as his tongue danced with yours.

The two of you stayed in that embrace pushed up against the window for a moment, catching your breath before he pulled out of you and helped you down.

You picked up the clothes you had put aside earlier and slipped them back on reluctantly as you watched Daryl get dressed. When you were done, you picked the vest up off the floor and handed it to him, a flirty smile playing on your lips.

He smirked and took it from you, slipping it back on his own shoulders where it belonged.

"Thanks for finding it," he said, wrapping his hand around the back of your neck, pulling you into him. He kissed you gently this time, which caused a whole new kind of feeling to stir in you.

Oh fuck, you thought, this can't be happening.

Daryl's kiss lingered on your lips even after he finally pulled back from you. The idea that you were starting to feel something scared the shit out of you, and it wasn't something you could deal with. You decided to just enjoy this moment and deal with that crap later.

"Thank you," you said to him before he turned towards the door.

"For what?" Daryl asked picking up his crossbow.

"For getting me out of a month of garden duty," you said with a wink and walked past him out of the cabin to head back home.


	4. Chapter 4

The hike back from the cabin was quiet as Daryl led you back through the trail towards the prison. Before you revealed yourselves from the tree line, you lightly touched his arm to get his attention.

"Daryl," you said coming to a halt, fingers lingering on his bicep. "Before we go back in there…"

Daryl smirked and looked at the ground, face slightly flushed and red. You couldn't tell if it was from the heat outside, or the heat from what happened in the cabin.

"Um, I just don't want things to be weird between us. I mean, it was just sex, right? We don't gotta make a big thing about it."

"Yeah," he said finally meeting your eyes. "Just a quick roll in the hay, right?"

"Exactly," you said and offered him a relieved smile. "I just hope we're good."

"Nah, we're good," he said and walked back towards the prison. He paused after a few steps, turned to face you again and leaned in closer. "But, anytime you wanna go hunt…" he cocked his head towards the woods, "just come find me."

His incredibly close proximity caused your whole body to flush hot and yet, despite the heat, it made your skin break out in goosebumps. Daryl noticed the reaction you had and raised an eyebrow at you.

"And," he said squaring up to you, taking your chin between his fingers, "remember what I said, you don't need to lure me out there for the other stuff…" his kiss took you off guard, and your loins had an immediate response to the sensation of his tongue lightly grazing against yours, "…you can come find me for that too."

When he released you from the kiss, you told yourself that that would be the last time. As much as you had wanted him, and still do…

GOD do I want him again already you thought as he turned and walked back to the prison, that would have to be the last time you let Daryl Dixon touch you, much less kiss you.

xxx

Getting back late, you had missed helping Carol with the dinner rush. Normally curt and to the point, Carol didn't mince words when she chastised you for blowing off your shift. After she walked away, you decided to try and make it up to her by cleaning down the barbecue and getting it ready for the breakfast bunch in the morning.

The sun had blessedly set, leaving only traces of burning embers in the sky. As the last bit of light fell behind the west wall of the prison, you set your sights out across the field where you could just make out Rick, Carl and Hershel walking through the crops.

"He ain't out there," a voice rang out from behind you making you jump. Maggie placed a hand on your shoulder and laughed at how jumpy you were.

"Jesus Maggie," your hand over the thudding heart in your chest, "gave me a damn heart attack."

"I'm sorry Y/N, but I couldn't help myself. You were so lost in thought…" her eyes grew as big as saucers and she playfully smacked you on the shoulder. "What happened today?! Did you find the cabin? Do I have to start extra shifts in the garden?"

Her excitement was palpable and you smiled at her enthusiasm for your conquest.

Before you could answer her, your mind flashed to that afternoon in the cabin with Daryl. Your face immediately flushed thinking of his raspy growl in your ear, how his fingers felt on your skin... But also, how you felt when he kissed you before leaving.

It was different from the straight up lust you'd both been tangled up in. That kiss and the last one outside the prison stirred things up in you that you let go a long time ago. You had promised yourself you were never going to let love be the thing that ruined you again. When Daryl's lips touched yours in a way that defied that rule you set for yourself, any thoughts of another roll in the hay had to be forgotten; as did Daryl.

"Y/N? What happened? Don't keep a girl in suspense!"

"Nothing happened," you lied. "We went hunting, did find the cabin, but I couldn't get him to bite. Guess I'll be pulling my own shifts for the next month."

Maggie looked at you suspiciously, her lips pursed and eyes narrowed. "Hmmm, so you're just gonna give up that easy?"

"Yeah, I mean, a girl can only put themselves out there so much, ya know? Besides, he's nice and all but maybe he's not really MY type," you shrugged a shoulder and turned your back to her pretending to be busy so she couldn't see the expression on your face. When you felt confident you could turn and look at your friend without betraying the truth of the situation, you smiled and said, "At least Bethy can have her shot now."

Maggie shook her head and smiled.

"That girl is gonna be the death of me. You shoulda heard her today going on and on about him… something about his vest. I don't know…"

Maggie's words trailed off at the mention of the vest. Your hand absently went to you're the place where the edge of the vest had fell against your chest. Flashes of the afternoon wouldn't stop playing across your memory. It took Maggie hitting your shoulder again to bring you back.

"Hey… that's the second time you spaced out on me. I'm startin' to feel offended," she said smiling at you.

"I'm sorry, it's been a long day," you said and felt a yawn play at your mouth.

"Well, I am sorry it didn't work out for you and Daryl. Maybe 'nother time…" Maggie said as she turned to go inside. "See ya in the mornin', ok?"

"Yeah, night Maggie," you smiled at your friend as she went home to her husband.

Watching her go, you felt a bit of relief. Your body was worn, spent and sweaty, and begging for a cold shower then your bunk to fall into. The one thing you didn't really want was to dream about Daryl, but your subconscious had other plans.


	5. Chapter 5

You woke from sleep feeling tired and restless. Even after a cool shower and quiet cell to sleep in thanks to your roommate not being there, sleep had been elusive. Dreams of Daryl plagued you throughout the night, and when your alarm went off it felt as though you had just gone to bed.

After getting washed and dressed, you headed out to the canopy where Carol was getting breakfast on. You got to work handing out plates to the people emerging from their cells while Carol continued to monitor the grill.

Plate after plate was handed out and when most of the people were settled and eating, you took a moment to turn and stretch. Due to a restless sleep and the activities from the day before, your muscles felt sore and tired. When the slideshow of memories started playing in your mind of how they got to feeling that way, your heart didn't want to think about it anymore. The smile that threatened the corners of your mouth, however, didn't care.

"Anything left for me?" Daryl's voice called from behind you as you stood up straight from a long stretch.

You turned around quickly, face flushed red from having been bent over, but also from his sudden presence. His eyes were all over you and when he saw how red you were, he didn't even try to hide his satisfaction at your reaction.

"Uh…" you looked over to Carol who was chatting with Michonne about the outer fences, then back to Daryl who was staring at you with a mischievous gleam in his eyes.

"Food… Y/N. Anything left?" He pointed down at the plates on the counter, his gaze never leaving you.

Going back to the counter, you grabbed a plate and filled it with what Carol had finished cooking. As you handed it to Daryl he let his fingers linger over yours, lightly brushing his fingertips over your hand.

"But, I'll take anything else you got too," he suggested just loud enough for you to hear him. Slowly sliding the plate from your hand, Daryl threw a few pieces of the meat into his mouth and walked away towards Carol and Michonne.

It wasn't until he was standing next to them did you realize you had been holding your breath. Daryl noticed you still motionless, but eyes firmly on him. He offered you a subtle wink and engaged in their conversation about the fences.

You could feel yourself getting upset and sort of angry about how nervous he suddenly made you. Taking in a deep breath you decided to step away for a few minutes to regain your composure.

Walking around the outside of the administration building you realized you were muttering to yourself. "How could you let this happen… seriously, what were you thinking. What made you think you could do this…?"

"Everything alright back here?"

You turned around sharply to see Daryl standing there with an amused look on his face as he watched you talking to yourself.

"Yeah, fine," you said and flashed a quick smile.

"Don't seem that way," he said walking towards you. "In fact, you don't seem ok at all. You're kinda jumpy and nervous. Ain't like you," Daryl seemed genuinely concerned, but was also giving you the same look he did in the cabin.

You had told him you didn't want things to be weird, so it was time to be honest with him. "Look, about what happened yesterday… I, um, I guess I didn't think it would have the effect that it did."

"Well, it's what you wanted. Right?" Daryl moved in closer to you, "at least that's what you told me… couple times if I remember right."

"Yes, that is true," you said smiling nervously. You felt your resolve starting to crack with each step he took closer to you. Now, he was just inches away and you were in a place where very few people from the prison walked through.

It would be nothing to grab him and kiss him. You wanted to demand that he have you right here. You didn't care if he just pushed you up against the brick wall and took whatever he wanted from you. The look on his face told you he would agree to that in a heartbeat, if he didn't just make that first move himself.

Your hands were trembling; your chest was rising and falling with nervous energy much like in the cabin. Just being near Daryl caused this surge of yearning that began somewhere deep down and quickly boiled over, making it impossible to keep him at bay.

"So, if it's true, why you gettin' all shy on me all of a sudden?"

His hands were on each of your shoulders, fingers slowly working their way around to the back of your neck. Your body stiffened as he pulled you into him, but not because you didn't want him too.

From the corner of your eye, a flash of blonde hair came bounding around the corner. You looked over to see Beth standing there, frozen, staring at you and Daryl. Daryl caught sight of her too and took a step back, removing his hand from your neck.

"Hey Beth," you managed to squeak out, "need somethin'?"

"Rick is looking for Daryl," she said flatly, her blue eyes staring daggers into you.

"Alright," Daryl said, looking back to you, "to be continued…" he whispered and walked off to go find Rick. It was hard to not let your eyes follow him out but with Beth watching you, you were able to resist.

The moment he was out of earshot, Beth marched at you, stamping her boots like a spoiled child. Her face looked like she'd just eaten a sour candy, twisted into a frown and her eyes were slits filled with rage.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Beth demanded.

"What are you talking about?" your head still swimming from the encounter with Daryl.

"Why can't you just leave him be?" she cried at you, no tears were falling but she was getting more and more upset. "He's a nice guy!"

"So, that means I can't talk to him?" Frustration was growing, but out of respect for Maggie and Hershel you were trying to be kind and calm.

"No!" Beth shouted, her voice getting louder. "You don't get to have the nice guys!"

Shaking your head in frustration, you started to walk away from her and back towards the kitchen. She followed you, clearly not ready to let it go. As you rounded the corner where people were eating breakfast, she continued her barrage at you.

"You shouldn't be talkin' to him like that!"

You stopped in your tracks and turned to face her.

"Like that? Like what? Just becareful little girl, I am trying to be nice here, but you are makin' it really hard."

You felt yourself reaching a place where you may not be able to pull back from. Between the intense heat, Daryl's effect and Beth's tantrum, you felt like your top was going to blow.

"Little girl?" Beth laughed to herself, "I'm the little girl? You're the one acting like…" she paused looking for the word she wanted.

You crossed your arms over your chest and waited for whatever comment was coming.

"Like what?" You asked with a raised brow.

"A slut!" Beth shouted. "You act like a damn slut!"

"Beth!" Hershel yelled from across the kitchen startling both of you.

You and Beth both turned at the same time to see him standing next to Maggie, Rick, and Daryl. Rick and Daryl exchanged a confused look. Maggie's brow was furrowed, her eyes fixed on Beth in disbelief. Beth turned to look at you and threw you a nasty look before running off to her cell.

Maggie called after her, but she didn't stop. Speaking softly to Hershel, Maggie started walking towards you, while Hershel went after Beth. Daryl took a tentative step towards you, then looked back over his shoulder in the direction Beth ran in.

"What the hell was that about?" Maggie asked as she approached you.

"Not here," you said looking around at all the people staring at you, "come on."

You grabbed Maggie's hand and pulled her around the building almost to the exact spot you were just at with Daryl.


	6. Chapter 6

"Alright, spill," Maggie said the second you were away from the crowd.

"Maggie, this is all such a mess," you slumped down and sat on the asphalt. Resting your head on the wall behind you, you turned to look at Maggie as she sat down next to you.

"What the hell is going on?" your friend asked placing a hand on your arm to comfort you.

"I lied to you last night, when I saw you after dinner," you confessed, eyes cast down to the ground. Shaking your head slightly, "… it's all so stupid."

Confused at first, Maggie's expression changed when she realized what you were talking about. A huge grin broke out on her face and she playfully hit you.

"Y/N! Why didn't you tell me?! You did it, didn't you?" Maggie clapped her hands together and laughed heartily. "I have so many questions! But," she paused trying to choose the which one to ask first, "I don't get why you would lie. All jokes about the bet aside, why wouldn't you tell me?"

"It doesn't matter really, just something I thought better to keep to ourselves. But today, Beth caught us talking…"

"Talking?" she repeated and snorted a laugh. "She got mad because you were talking to him?" Maggie shook her head and sighed.

"Well, to be fair, we were in very close proximity to each other… and his hands were on my neck, our faces were like this far apart," you held up your fingers about two inches apart.

Maggie slowly turned to look at you, her mouth open in surprise.

"No! Are you serious?" Her patented Maggie Greene smile plastered across her face. "Shut up! I can't even imagine the Daryl Dixon I know behavin' like that."

"Guess Beth couldn't either. The second he walked away she just kind of laid into me."

You thought about how she took the vest from his bunk and how adamant she was about you steering clear of him. Her crush on Daryl was obvious, but it was also getting out of control.

"She…" you hesitated, but realized that Maggie needed to know just how far Beth's infatuation had gone. You continued with a sigh "…Beth took Daryl's vest from his bunk and was going to wash it. He thought it was missing. He had no idea where it was. So, that means she snuck in when he was either not there… or worse, when he was sleeping?"

Maggie exhaled deeply and laid her head back against the bricks.

"Maggie, you might want to talk to her. There's no love lost between me and your little sister, but I don't want to see her get hurt or do somethin' stupid. She's a good kid, just sorta misguided I think."

Maggie nodded in agreement. "I'll talk to her tomorrow. Make sure she just gives you and Daryl some space."

"No, no… not necessary," you spoke up, waving your hands back and forth. "Daryl and I don't need space. It was a onetime thing." You tried to keep your voice steady, but when you met Maggie's eyes again you could see that she saw right through you.

"Yeah, ok," she said shaking her head and snorting a laugh. "That's a conversation for another day. Come on, we got work to do."

Maggie stood up and offered her hand to help you up. The two of you started walking back towards the front of the building, but she turned, putting a hand up to stop you.

"I have one more question," she said, shielding her face against the sun.

"What's that?" you sighed

"How was it?" her devious little smile made you laugh and you pushed her away playfully.

"Conversation for another day Greene. C'mon, we got work, remember?"

xxx

Later that afternoon, Daryl was laying on the ground under one of the cars repairing a brake line that got damaged on a recent run. He pulled himself out from it and stood up, releasing the jack and setting the car down as Maggie and Glenn were walking by.

"Hey," he called out to get them to stop, "Maggie, hold up a sec." They both turned around and waited for Daryl to catch up.

"Mind if I steal your wife for a minute?" Daryl asked Glenn.

"Yeah, sure," he said to Daryl, then turned to Maggie. "I'll be out by Tower 3. Rick wants to start getting supplies for the east side fences now."

"Ok," Maggie smiled and kissed him before turning back to Daryl, "What's up?"

"Beth alright?" he asked quietly, concerned for her state of mind. Thinking back to how she had been on the farm, he knew how emotional she could get and didn't want to see her try and hurt herself again.

"Yeah, she's just embarrassed. She'll be fine."

"Good," Daryl paused, wanting to ask Maggie another question, but he was having a hard time forcing the words out. "So, this morning… what was that all about?"

Maggie scrunched her face in a wince of discomfort and tried to offer Daryl a smile. "Well, it was about you."

"What about me?" he asked, his body language leaning towards the defensive.

"It's just that Beth doesn't like Y/N very much. She sees her hangin' round you…" she sighed and shook her head slightly in frustration. "She's still just a kid sometimes, ya know?"

Daryl nodded in understanding, but not without a bit of frustration. "I get it," he mumbled, biting on his lower lip. He furrowed his brow and looked at Maggie.

"What else is on your mind?" she'd known him long enough to know when he was working something through. Daryl hesitated and Maggie gave him the time to find the words.

"What's Beth's problem with Y/N?" he finally had the courage to ask.

"Honestly, I wish I knew. Goes back to when we were kids I guess. Beth always had a problem with Y/N hangin' round Sean. It was always kinda funny though, never got to anything like that," Maggie said motioning towards the kitchen. "I've never seen Beth that mad. But like I told Y/N, I'll talk to her, get her to cool it."

"You talked to Y/N about it already?" Daryl couldn't help but blush a little and wonder just how much Maggie knew.

"A little," Maggie smiled at Daryl's reaction, but didn't want to embarrass him any more than he clearly already was. "Look, don't worry about it, ok? Beth… I'll talk to her… and be sure to tell her to stay clear of your bunk when you're not there."

"What's that?" Daryl asked, placing his hands on his hips and staring at Maggie. "What the hell you talkin' about?"

"Your vest. Y/N told me she found Beth 'bout to wash it. She shouldn't have taken it without asking. I know she meant well but, sometimes she gets carried away…"

Daryl's frustration was hard not to see. Maggie offered him a sorry smile and turned when she heard Glenn call her name from down in the yard. She threw her hand up in a wave and motioned that she needed another minute.

Daryl nodded once and motioned with his chin towards tower 3. "You better catch up with Glenn. Don't want to hear his shit later 'bout keeping you too long." He tried to joke with her, but she could tell his was beyond irritated.

"I'm sorry about Beth, Daryl. But, for what it's worth, I think whatever is happenin' with you and Y/N is pretty amazin'…" she couldn't help when the grin spread across her face, "It's good to see her smile again, especially after all she's lost."

Maggie's attention was back towards Glenn, so she didn't see the confused look on his face. Daryl hadn't known anything about your life or family other than that you knew the Greene's. He thought back to what you had said about it being a onetime thing, and how you'd behaved when he approached you that morning.

Lost in thought, he barely gave a nod when Maggie said goodbye and left to meet up with Glenn.


	7. Chapter 7

Laying your head down on your pillow, you closed your eyes and tried to forget the day. Your roommate was already well into her nightly routine of deep sleep snoring, and despite the exhaustion you felt, you could not sleep.

A soft tapping on your cell door caused you to get up and peak around the curtain. Daryl was leaning one shoulder against the bars, his hands fidgeting together. Despite everything, you were happy to see him. You flashed him a weary, but sweet smile and stepped out into the cell block.

"Did I wake you?" he asked in a raspy whisper.

"No, I was up," suddenly aware that you were in the middle of the cell block without being completely dressed dawned on you. "Um, give me a sec, ok? Just want to throw on some clothes."

Quickly stepping back into your bunk, you kicked off your pajamas shorts and put back on your jeans as well as grabbed a bra and clean black t-shirt from under your bunk. Throwing on your boots and taking a second to tidy up your hair, you stepped back out to see him standing in the same spot.

"Wanna take a walk with me?" he asked quietly.

Oh shit, you thought, here we go… Daryl's hand reached out for yours. You hesitated for a moment and decided to take the chance and take his. He led you through the winding corridors until you were at the exit that led to the courtyard.

The night air was blissfully cool compared to the stagnant air of the cell block. A light breeze came along, lifting the strands of hair from your neck. The moon was covered by a cluster of clouds that allowed just enough permeation of light so you could see Daryl's face.

Just go back to bed… walk away, the logical part of you repeated over and over, yet no part of you could physically do it.

Daryl continued to lead you through the courtyard and down to where all the vehicles were kept. As you neared his motorcycle, you realized there were two backpacks on the ground against it. Before climbing on the bike, Daryl opened one of the backpacks and pulled out his poncho.

When he held it out to you, his eyes locked with yours and you took it without hesitation. His silence was slightly maddening but in a way, that added to the tension you always felt around him. Even after spending that afternoon in the cabin, the strain that was always present was part of what made being around him feel so exciting.

You put on his poncho and watched him climb onto the bike. You grabbed the bookbag and slung it on your back and took your place behind him. With your arms firmly wrapped around his waist, Daryl flipped the ignition, started the bike and slowly maneuvered it down the path to the main gate.

While you waited for Tyrese to open the gate, you leaned forward close to his ear.

"Where are we going?"

"To hunt," he said before powering through the entrance.


	8. Chapter 8

Less than an hour later, Daryl turned off the road down a long, winding driveway that went on for a mile or more. The light from the bike revealed a large log cabin, complete with wrap around porch, stone chimney and porch swing by the front door.

The outside was littered with debris and garbage. An abundance of thicket and brush had taken over a good part of the porch. The windows were all blacked out, and there were chains linked across the front door. You looked around and wondered why he would bring you here.

"What is this place?" you asked. Daryl didn't answer, he just parked the bike near the side of the house and took your hand again.

You followed him up the rear steps of the porch and waited for him to expertly pick the lock. Once inside you were awed by what you saw. Despite the rough outside, the cabin was nearly perfect inside. The sparse furniture was clean and intact throughout each room, and the best part was, there were no walkers or corpses to deal with.

Daryl closed and relocked the door behind you. You were looking out the plate glass window at the back of the room when he wandered back to you. He gently stripped the backpack from your shoulder and helped you take off the poncho.

"Daryl, what are we doing here?" you wanted to trust him, but his lack of communication was beginning to become unnerving.

"That cabin we were at before, that was Maggie and Glenn's place," he said, a sly grin forming on his face at your expression of surprise.

"You knew about that?"

"Yeah, who you think found it for 'em?" he laughed. His hand came up to the side of your face and brushed away a stray hair. "You were right what you said, about not being able to do something like that back home."

Your face flushed red at the mention of your tryst in the cabin, but it grew hotter when Daryl's hand went to his favorite spot on your neck. His thumb rubbed the front of your throat lightly, while his grip kept you close, but with still enough distance to be slightly exasperating.

"I was thinkin' today how it'd be nice to have a place of our own. Maybe one that Glenn and Maggie ain't been shackin' up in."

"Daryl…" you wanted to tell him no, that you couldn't do this with him. But as he drew you into him that last bit of resolve shattered, and you were ready to completely belong to him.

"What? You gonna feed me some bullshit line again 'bout how it was a onetime thing?" his voice was low and intoxicating.

"No, I mean… yes. Yes, that's what wanted to say," he leaned his face into yours, close enough to kiss him, but he didn't try to yet.

"So, you had some fun and now you're done with me?" There was something in his tone that made a shiver of excitement run up your spine. "Huh?" he asked with brows raised as his thumb continued to lightly stroke that spot at the bottom of your neck.

"I didn't think…" your words were lost in the heavy breaths escaping your lips.

"Nah, you didn't," Daryl's left hand ran down the length of your body, resting on your hip. He slowly pulled you in the last couple of inches until no light could be seen between you.

"Wait. Please," y/e/c eyes pleading with him to hear you. He gave you a small measure of space, but didn't stray far from you. "I didn't think about what this meant… being with you. I didn't think about what may happen."

Daryl's eyes narrowed and he tried to study your face for an explanation. Swallowing hard, you stepped away from him and towards the windows at the back of the room. Finally turned to look at him, you mustered all the courage you had and tried to explain.

"See, at the beginning of everything, I lost everyone. My husband, my kids, my home. It took a long time to be ok again after that. Fast forward a year and I stumble into a place where I actually know people; a place that is safe. I felt like I got my bearings, and then there you were. I have wanted you since I first laid eyes on you…" you were rambling and nervous, but knew he had to understand where you were coming from.

"You threw me for a loop Daryl. In all my life I have never, ever felt anything like it. Not even with my husband. You brought something out in me that I didn't know existed. Never in my life would I have done something like I did the other day in that cabin. It's just not me…"

Daryl was walking towards you, the moonlight giving away enough to see the smirk on his face. When he was within arm's reach, you took a step into him closing the gap even further.

"I just didn't expect it to make me feel more than I wanted. I can't be much more to you than just an occasional good time. Not that this is necessarily something you wanted, but I know I don't have it in me. I needed you to know that before this goes any further," when your eyes locked with his, Daryl's softened seeming to finally understand.

"What is it that you want then?" he purred and brushed a kiss lightly against your cheek, letting his lips linger. Closing your eyes as his face brushed against yours, you knew there was no fighting the ache you felt for him.

"I don't know, just not what Glenn and Maggie have. I don't want another husband, Daryl. Didn't work out so well the first time, and that was well before the world went to shit."

Again, he took your chin lightly between his fingers. His beautiful blue eyes finding yours and drinking you in.

"This, doesn't have to be that," he said with a raised brow and half a smirk. "This can be whatever the hell we want it to be. You wanna be here with me like this, then go home and have it be life as usual? That's fine. I just need you to promise one thing…"

Daryl's face grew serious for a moment. He reached out and grabbed you pulling you into him again; this time with the same look of dominance he showed in the cabin. The very look that threw more fuel on the fire already burning out of control deep in your core.

"What?" The question came out slightly breathless as Daryl's grip on you became firmer.

"There ain't no one else that gets to touch you like this," he growled low into your ear and ran one lone finger lightly down your breast and across your nipple. "You don't have to be my girl, you don't have to be anything more than you wanna be. I ain't looking to be anybody's white knight, or husband… But, when it comes to us like this, I don't wanna share ya."

"I can promise that," you said and biting at your lower lip. Your need to have him was growing and you didn't know if giving in, even with him understanding your limits, was a good idea. "You sure you don't care that…"

"The only thing I care about right now," Daryl said, cutting you off and circling around so he was now standing behind you, "is how many rooms of this place I get to have you in tonight."

He brushed your hair off your neck and pushed it to one side. His mouth was on your neck nipping and kissing from your collarbone to your ear. His hands were reaching down in front of you, grasping at the hem of your shirt and pulling it up over your head.

You stepped forward and turned to look at him. His chest was rising and falling rapidly, and you could tell he was getting anxious for you. Walking across the room towards the small hallway, you kicked off your cowboy boots and slowly unbuttoned your jeans. You turned to go down the hallway and slipped them off seductively as you moved towards the bedroom.

It took Daryl only a few strides to catch up to you. Before you knew it, he had scooped you up and had you in the bedroom. Throwing you down on the bed, he made quick work of getting his boots and pants to join the crumpled mess on the floor. He had your bra undone and on the floor in one quick motion. You sat up on your knees and helped unbutton his shirt, suddenly desperate to feel his flesh against yours.

Once he was completely bare in front of you, you laid back on the bed and let him have you. No more words or worries about what could come of your time with him. There was nothing fast and furious like your first time with him. For the next hour, Daryl took his time, tasting every part of you.

When he couldn't hold out anymore, he flipped you over, lifting your hips to meet his. Sliding himself inside you brought a moan to his lips that delighted you. Knowing you could make him feel that good excited you even more. Daryl was leaning over you from behind. His face buried in your hair, the weight of him rocking you back and forth making you feel a euphoric sense of satisfaction.

As he got closer to reaching his peak, he pushed his body down deeper into you, hitting that spot that made you scream for him. His broad shoulders covering your back, his arms and hands wrapping around yours, fingers entwined together.

"Oh.. shit… Y/N… What the fuck you do to me…" Daryl's mouth was right at your ear, his voice barely a whisper, but it was enough to push you over the edge. You felt his cock start to throb inside you, and your body responded in kind.

Daryl bit down on your neck right blow your ear as he came inside you, causing you to squeal in a combination of pain and bliss. He sat up tall on his knees, pulling you up with him. His hands covering your breasts and pulling you into him as you allowed your bodies to unwind from the climax.

His breath still heavy in your ear, he left a trail of kisses from down your neck, and when he reached your shoulders, his tongue glided back up the same way causing your skin to break out in goosebumps all over.

"Fuck…" trying to catch your breath, you turned your head to see his face. Daryl's eyes were closed, a broad smile unable to hid on his face.

"Yeah," Daryl purred and buried his face into your hair, "a onetime thing… right."

Leaving a few more lingering, hungry kisses on your neck, Daryl reluctantly released you from his grip and laid down on the bed. You laid beside him, but was sure to leave an arm's length between you.

"Why you so far away?" he asked, his eyes heavy with satisfaction but also a touch of longing.

"I told you…" you said, sitting up on your elbow, but unable to look him in the eyes anymore, "I can't be more to you than this… and if I buried myself in there," you placed a hand on his chest, "I may never get out."

Daryl reached over, moving hair that was covering your eyes.

"Like I said, this can be whatever we want it to be. I ain't opposed to bringin' this home, but I get where you're comin' from. I want you to be happy and comfortable."

You smiled at him. No matter how badly you wanted to put the brakes on all that was stirring, you knew deep down that you might as well be riding in a runaway car.

'Ain't no brakes in this baby' you thought as he smiled up at you.

Daryl directed his motorcycle back through the entrance of the prison just as dawn was about to break. He parked in his usual spot and you climbed off once he killed the engine. The yard was still quiet, no one had emerged to start their day.

"I'll catch ya later?" you asked before turning to head back to your bunk. If you were lucky you could catch an hour or two of sleep before you had to be somewhere.

"Mhmm, you will," Daryl said with a little nod while chewing on his lower lip.

"Ok…" you turned to go, but could feel his eyes watching you walk away. You couldn't help but turn back around and look at him. He was still straddling the Triumph, hands resting on his thighs, eyes fixed firmly on your body. He was still biting his lip but stopped when he saw you walking back towards him.

You grabbed his face with both hands and planted a kiss on his lips. You pulled away with a smile before he had a chance to kiss you back.

"Pick me up tonight and we'll go see what other rooms we can christen at our cabin," you raised your eyes brows and winked. Daryl licked his lower lip and lightly smacked you on the ass.

"You better go woman before I take you back there right now," he growled. You came close to asking him too, but thought better about it. You needed to be able to hold off your growing feelings for as long as possible. After the night you just shared, the best way to do that would be with a little distance.

You turned to go, waving over your shoulder as you did. That image of Daryl sitting on his bike staying with you through your shower and the little bit of sleep you got that morning.


	9. Chapter 9

After spending the morning out in the garden with Rick, Hershel and Carl, you headed up to the kitchen to help Carol put out lunch for the kids. As Carol left to go get more water from the pump, Maggie found you brushing off the grill.

"That looks fun," she said wrinkling her nose at the grill, then looking at you. "Well, look at you… you look exhausted! Guess an all-nighter with Daryl will do that to ya."

Maggie couldn't help but look like the bird who ate the canary. Her playful eyes and smile made you laugh and shake your head. She picked up a piece of the bread that was left from lunch and popped a piece in her mouth.

"How the hell did you know I was out with Daryl?"

"Glenn and I spent the night in the tower. Heard the bike going out and then comin' in at dawn. Don't worry, no one else saw ya. Secrets safe with us." Maggie winked and nodded towards Glenn, who was across the courtyard talking to Rick about the fences.

You felt your face blush, and she shook her head in jest.

"So, you never did answer my question from yesterday," she raised an eyebrow at you assuming you remembered.

"What question?" you asked playing dumb.

"How. Was. It? I mean, I don't need exact details," she leaned in closer to you, "but c'mon, give a girl somethin' to work with here."

Taking a deep breath, you desperately wanted to tell her how earth shattering and life-affirming a romp with Daryl was. You also wanted to tell her that as hard as you were trying not to, feelings were there… real fucking feelings that you desperately wanted to go away.

"Maggie… it was not at all what I expected, but everything I could have ever wanted," you said much more dreamily than you intended too.

"Good Lord," she said somewhat mockingly. "I just can't imagine Daryl… not that I think about him like that," Maggie was wavering hands and you couldn't help but laugh at her.

"Ohhhh, maybe I should go have a little chat with Glenn," you teased and she swatted at you.

"You know what I mean! I am glad for you though, it's nice to see you so happy," she smiled sweetly at you.

"It's just fun, Maggie. We aren't together," you said the words but had a tough time believing it yourself.

"Right, right… just casual sex with Daryl… got it," Maggie said rolling her eyes and making an exaggerated OK with her fingers, completely dismissing your claim.

"Just sex?" a small voice chimed in from behind you.

You both turned to see Beth standing there, her arms crossed over her chest, eyes twitching back and forth between you and Maggie.

"What are you talkin' about?" she asked Maggie.

"Nothin' Beth, just having some girl talk with Y/N."

"I can see that," she said walking closer to where you and Maggie were standing by the grill. "You're sleeping with Daryl?" her eyes now focused on you, her brow furrowed with anger.

"Beth, it's really none of your business," you were trying to be kind because Maggie was nearby, but lack of sleep and a general annoyance at her presence caused your fuse to be cut in half.

"I can't believe you, why can't you just leave him alone?"

"Beth!" Maggie shouted. "Stop! This isn't any of your concern."

"It is when I see someone I care about getting involved with someone like this," she waved at hand in your direction and you knew if you didn't walk away, someone was going to get hurt.

"Maggie, I'll talk to you later. I can't deal with this right now," you offered her a small smile and walked through the kitchen towards the courtyard.

"Yeah, just walk away!" Beth called after you, "That's what you do, right?! It's what you did to my brother, why not do it to Daryl too!"

That stopped you in your tracks. Taking a deep breath, you turned to face Beth who was just a few steps behind you. You stared at her with such intensity you thought you saw her flinch. You took a few tentative steps closer to her so you were certain she would be able to hear you.

"I cared about your brother, a lot. But we were never together Beth. So, whatever you think you know about me and him, you don't. And as for Daryl…" you moved in even closer so you could see your reflection in her eyes, "I have no plans on walking away from him, ever. As a matter of fact, I can tell you with complete certainty that he one of the best, most kind, surprising men I've met." She stared daggers at you, which just made you want to keep digging at her. "Not to mention the best fuck I've ever had in my life."

That pushed her over the edge. Before you could move, her hand flew out and smacked you across the face.

"Beth!" Maggie shouted running over to where you stood.

Shocked by her boldness, you couldn't help but chuckle. Your cheek was bright red and stung like a bitch, yet you were still amused by her audacity and refused to give her a reaction. True, you had goaded her, but having known Beth since she was a little girl, you never thought she'd have that in her.

"What the hell is going on over here?" Daryl's voice cut through the air.

You turned to face him and he saw the handprint now forming on your cheek. Beth stood motionless, half seething with anger and half shocked at her actions.

"Beth," Maggie said, touching her elbow to get her attention.

"It's nothing," you said to Daryl shaking your head.

"That mark on your face nothin' too?" he asked looking back and forth between you and Beth.

"She's not a nice person Daryl, she's never been. You don't know what you're gettin' into with her," Beth pleaded with him.

"That's enough Beth, this is none of your business," Maggie said quietly, trying to get her sister's attention, but Beth's gaze was fixed on Daryl.

He walked past you, giving you a quick once-over of your cheek before stepping between you and Beth.

"Listen," he said gently, "I get you're just tryin' to look out for me, but Maggie's right. This ain't none of your business." Daryl turned back to look at you, and you could see a small flash of disappointment before he looked back at Beth. "Besides, me and Y/N, we're friends is all. We ain't together."

"She said you were sleeping together, but used much more vulgar language," Beth said, looking around Daryl, narrowing her gaze in your direction.

"Whatever we are, is between us, Beth. You know I care about you, right? You're family, just like Maggie, and Glenn, and your dad. But this is gettin' crazy. First, you went to my bunk and took the vest without asking, then you're calling Y/N names in front of everyone. Now, this?"

"You promised…" Beth said, no longer listening to Daryl. "You promised you wouldn't tell him," she shouted at you.

"I didn't," you said and shrugged. "But it doesn't matter now because you've already made up your mind about me Beth. I'm a horrible person. I get it. I screwed your brother over, and now I am just screwing Daryl. That's enough for you to hate me, so be it."

You turned to walk away and noticed a small crowd had gathered on the fringe of the confrontation. Rick and Glenn were watching with furrowed brows, as Michonne and Carol were approaching from around the outside of C block.

"See? She just walks away, especially when the truth hurts," Beth yelled, trying to fight the tears back.

You felt like all eyes were on you. You watched as Glenn walked over to Maggie and turned around to look at Daryl. He was still standing between you and Beth, but his eyes were cast down to the ground, a look on his face you couldn't read. But when he did look up at you, it was all you needed to realize what an ass you'd been. Everything faded away, including Beth and her accusations. You caught a glimpse of Maggie and Glenn standing together, hands interlaced with the other and you realized that you had been wrong the whole time.

You did want what they had. You wanted to fall in love again, even if it meant adding the potential to be hurt. Thinking back to the last few days you'd gotten closer to Daryl, it all seemed so clear. Your attraction to him was so much more than you realized. It went beyond his broad shoulders and sensual swagger when he moved. Your pull towards Daryl was because of who he was at his core.

"Oh, fuck it," you mumbled as you started walking back towards Daryl, taking the biggest steps, you could to quickly close the distance. Before he could react, you through your arms around his neck and kissed him.

Without hesitation, he grabbed you by the waist and kissed you back. The second his lips were on yours, you knew you made the right choice. It didn't matter that you were in front of everyone, Daryl kissed you deeply and you felt yourself smiling. He pulled back from you and rested his forehead on yours.

"You sure?" he asked in a rough whisper.

"Yeah, I'm sure," you kissed his lips lightly and looked beyond him. Beth had already stormed off towards the interior of the prison, unable to watch your display any longer.

Maggie and Glenn stood a few yards away smiling at both of you. Looking at Maggie with a quizzical expression, she started laughing.

"What are you laughing at Greene?" you asked, your arms still wrapped around the man that was now everything you said you didn't want.

"Oh, well, I just won a bet, finally. I bet Glenn that you two would be together by the end of the week." Without looking at her husband, she held her hand out flat while Glenn dug into his pocket while rolling his eyes. He pulled out a package of sunflower seeds and put it in her hand.

"You did what?" Daryl asked, looking between you and Maggie.

"She bet me you two would end up together. I didn't think you would be, at least not for a while longer," Glenn said shaking his head. "Last bag of sunflower seeds too. You guys really couldn't hold out a while?"

You looked at Maggie, and you both starting laughing.

"Speaking of… I'll cash in those days you owe me in the garden Maggie," you turned back to Daryl and rested your head on his chest. "I may be a little busy in the next couple weeks."

"What the hell are they talkin' about?" Daryl asked Glenn, a confused expression on his face.

"I don't know man, women are crazy sometimes," Glenn looked at his wife who seemed unimpressed by his assessment. "Well, not you, but you know… most."

Maggie grabbed Glenn's hand and offered you a smile. "C'mon Glenn, let's go look busy so they can have a moment."

You watched them walk away, and when you realized that it was just you and Daryl standing alone in the courtyard, you kissed him again.

"That didn't take long," he said brushing a hair from your bright red cheek.

"Eh, I'm just a sucker I guess." You kissed him again, and for the first time since you made the bet with Maggie, you felt completely at peace with the idea of allowing someone into your heart again.

As Daryl took your hand in his, he had a small smile on his lips. "Maggie dared you, didn't she?"

You looked up at him surprised as you walked down the road that led to the main gate. "What? No…" you said blowing him off.

"Yeah, ok," he said looking out over the yard, "just, remind me to thank her later."

He wrapped his arm around your shoulder and kissed you on the top of the head. As you walked the last few yards towards the tower, you put your arm around his hips and smiled, ready to face your group of friends as a newly cemented couple.


	10. Chapter 10

A light tapping on the cell door woke you from a restless sleep. You looked over at Daryl who was lying on his stomach, face buried into his pillow. The light wrap came again as you swung your legs to the ground and walked to the curtain.

You looked up at the barred windows and saw that the sun hadn't begun to rise yet. Maggie was barely a silhouette standing outside your cell. There was just enough moonlight coming through to show that her face was covered in concern.

"What's wrong? You ok?" you asked rubbing a hand on her arm.

"Sorry I woke you… I just…"

"No, no, it's fine. What's wrong?"

Maggie sighed deep, and then pulled you away from the entrance to your bunk, sitting on the stairs.

"I think I'm pregnant," her eyes were fixed on the ground, arms crossed over her stomach. You wrapped your arm around her shoulder and she rested her head on yours.

"Think or know?" you asked, trying to remain positive.

"Think. I'm gonna go see the doc once Glenn leaves for that run later on," she met your eyes and you saw something surprising in them. Amid the worry the situation caused, there was also a glimmer of hope.

"Maggie, do you want to be pregnant?"

"I…," she ran her hands through her hair and shrugged. "It's easier to not be, but… I wouldn't hate it if I was."

"Do you want me to go see the doc with you?"

"No, that's ok. I can handle it, thanks though," she smiled at you sweetly. "I don't know, I guess I just needed to say it out loud to someone."

"What about Glenn?" you asked and tried to imagine how he would feel about a baby. Being in love and having someone in your life was one thing. That was hard enough. Knowing all the complications that could arise during a pregnancy, the idea terrified you; even more now that it's your best friend who's with child.

"He knows that I haven't been feelin' great, but that's it. I figured I would find out first, but…"

"You should tell him Maggie. Even if it is a no, let him be there for you." You smiled wearily, and she shook her head at you.

Maggie stood up and leaned back against the railing. She sighed deeply, and you could see a tear glistening at the corner of her eye.

You stood up and hugged her tightly.

"No matter what, it's gonna be fine. You have a safe place here, two docs, and a whole lotta people that love you," your hands were on her shoulders and your eyes locked with hers. "Tell Glenn before he goes. Then when he gets back, he'll know one way or the other."

"You're right, I'm gonna go talk to him now," she turned and you followed her back down to the entrance of your cell. When you paused there, she hugged you quickly before turning back to head to her own bed.

When you walked back in Daryl was lying face up, one arm tucked behind his head and his eyes on you as you entered the room.

"Sorry if we woke you," you said leaving your pajama shorts on the floor and slipping back under the covers, burying your head into the crook of his shoulder.

Daryl kissed your forehead and instinctively wrapped his arm around you. He emitted a low, purring sigh and you felt his hand run down to the small of your back.

"Everythin' alright," he asked, his voice thick with sleep.

"Mhmm," you responded nuzzling into his chest.

"Time to get up yet?" his hand starting to travel lower, tracing the lines of your panties around your hips.

"Not yet," you said, feeling his fingers dig deeper into your skin.

"Good," he growled and rolled over on top of you, causing you to squeal a laugh and wrap your legs around him. Daryl pinned your arms over your head with one hand, while leaning his full weight into you. His other hand was making quick work of removing the lower half of your clothing, letting his hands linger in the warmth between your legs and making you crazy in anticipation of him.

These early morning sessions had become commonplace in the five weeks you'd been with him. The day after you'd kissed him in front of everyone, he asked you to move your stuff into his cell and you didn't hesitate.

The more time you spent together, the more you were confident in your choice to take a chance on someone again. Any thoughts or lingering worries were gone and Daryl was completely yours. You knew that you loved him, and even though there was no doubt, they were words you hadn't told him yet.

He was attentive to you in every way, especially during the intimate moments both in your cell and at your hideaway cabin. At home, he always made sure you were ok before leaving you and then checking in throughout the day. He would go out on runs or go out to hunt, while you worked the gardens and helped Carol with the meals. The second he returned, you were his first stop.

The nights you spent at the cabin with Daryl were a whirlwind of mind-numbing bliss that felt too unbelievable to be real. He was a different kind of lover there than back at the prison. As if the opportunity to not have to restrain himself brought out even more of the wild animal he had residing inside; the one he reserved only for you.

After, when you lay tangled together on the bunk, breathless and happy, you found him staring at you with a look of concern.

"Do you wanna come today?" he asked tentatively.

"To the Big Spot?" you were surprised and slightly amused at the invitation.

"Mhmm," Daryl mumbled and tucked a stray hair behind your ear.

"Since when do you want me out on a run with you?"

"I'd always rather you stay here. But, I don't know… I wouldn't hate it if you were with me today," his hand tracing along your collarbone, his eyes locked on yours.

"Well, I'm flattered. But I think I'm better here. Promised Maggie I would help her out with some stuff," you said thinking about your chat with her earlier. Besides that, you were feeling more tired than normal and thought it would be better for you both to stay behind.

"Alright, maybe next time," he kissed you and sat up on the edge of the bed. You watched him move about the cell collecting his clothes and gathering his gear for the run. Forcing yourself up from the bed was a harder chore than you expected, suddenly exhausted.

Despite the ache to go back to sleep, you got dressed while Daryl watched you with a smile.

"Hey," he said getting your attention, "we should go to the cabin tonight."

You slipped the tank top over your bra and walked over to him shaking your head.

"What, you didn't get enough this morning?" you teased and slipped your arms around his neck.

Putting his crossbow in the bunk, he placed his hands on either side of your face and leaned in to kiss you deeply. The smell of his leather coat and vest filled your nostrils and you melted into him. He finally released you from the kiss, but let his hands fall to your shoulders, then lightly brushed down the length of your bare arms.

"You think that was enough? That was just the appetizer," he whispered in your ear. He reached back down to pick up the crossbow and brushed a kiss against your cheek. "Have your shit packed, we're going as soon as I get back tonight. And, uh…" he motioned to the small set of drawers where you kept some of your personal items, "…pack that thing I like."

You watched him turn to leave and felt a simultaneous rush of love and lust go to your head. It caused the room to spin for a moment, but you steadied yourself against the bunk.

"What the hell was that," you muttered to yourself, shaking your head and taking in a deep breath. When you felt your feet were firmly under you, you left your bunk and ran after Daryl to give him one more proper goodbye.


	11. Chapter 11

Waiting for Daryl's return from The Big Spot was nearly as painful as waiting to hear from Maggie about her trip to see the doc. Fighting back the swirling dizziness and nausea all day in the heat had proved harder than you thought. Trying to find some refuge in the shade of the cell block, your nerves wouldn't allow you to sit still. Pacing back and forth in the middle of C Block, you watched the sun's light finally disappear beyond the prison windows and felt your gut lurch again.

Several people walked by, saw the anxiety written on your face and offered you a sad smile or nod. You returned it in kind to be polite but your eyes never strayed far from the door that either Maggie or Daryl would hopefully be walking through.

Maggie came in first, a wide grin on her face. Seeing her expression, you breathed a sigh of relief and hugged her.

"So, no?" you asked when you let her go.

"No, I'm not pregnant," she said taking a deep breath, "and, I know what I said before, but, I am relieved. Maybe one day, but I'm just not ready yet."

"As long as you're ok," you smiled at her, but it was forced and she could tell.

"What's wrong? You look terrible," Maggie put her arm around you and walked you back to your cell. She made you sit on the bunk while she got you a cup of water.

You drank it slowly and shook her head. "I don't know, just been tired and not feeling well," you looked up at her, "noticed a few others looked kinda green tonight too, maybe it was just somethin' we ate."

"Maybe…" Maggie was cut off by the sound of footsteps and Daryl walking through the cell door.

You jumped up immediately and ran to him. Daryl barely had a chance to set his crossbow down before you were throwing your arms around his neck. He buried his face into your neck, his fingers tangling in your hair as he pulled you close.

He pulled back, gently touched his forehead to yours, and looked at Maggie.

"Glenn's alright," he said and Maggie smiled, "but... uh… we lost Zach. I already stopped and talked to Beth…" Daryl trailed off and you could feel his grip on you grow stronger.

"I'll go check on her," Maggie placed a hand on your shoulder before heading out. "You, get some rest please," she raised her eyebrows at you and you promised her you would.

When she was gone, Daryl quietly closed the bars and pulled the curtains across the length of the door. He stopped and lit the lantern on the table, turning the wick down so there was just barely a flicker of light in your bunk.

"I know I said we should go to the cabin, but, mind if we just stay here tonight? We can always go tomorrow," he suggested as he advanced on you.

"Of course, that's fine," you smiled and when he was within arm's reach, you grabbed him by the top of his belt and pulled him in closer. "I don't care where we are, as long as we're together."

"That so?" Despite the weariness, you both felt, sleep was the furthest thing from your mind. Daryl looked over at your bag that was packed that morning in anticipation for the rendezvous at the cabin and you knew what he was thinking.

"Still time to unpack that if you want me to," you reached up and brushed a hint of a kiss against his ear. You could feel him respond to you immediately, his growing erection hard against the lower part of your stomach.

Daryl growled and reluctantly released you. When he turned his back to grab the bag off the ground, you kicked off your boots and began to unbuckle your jeans. Daryl turned back to you and saw you were already undressing. He stepped back until he was leaning against the wall of the cell and let the bag fall to the floor. The flicker of the lantern offered him just enough light to watch you. His eyes covering you from head to toe, you smiled and enjoyed him watching you undress.

When your jeans hit the floor, you reached out to get your bag to retrieve the lingerie he had brought back for you weeks ago, but he slowly shook his head.

You raised your eyebrows at him in question, and he just silently shook his head again. Daryl crossed his arms over his chest, kicked one foot back against the wall and waited.

He didn't need to tell you what he wanted, you just knew. Grabbing the bottom hem of your tank top, you slowly pulled it up over your head and let it go to the floor. Daryl continued to watch you, his eyes narrowed on your every move.

You unhooked your bra, and let the straps fall down your arms. He started to approach you and you shook your head at him. "Against the wall Dixon," you said, motioning for him to go back.

He complied but clearly wasn't happy in doing so. Letting the bra join the other clothes, you finally got close enough for him to touch you, and Daryl didn't hesitate.

His mouth was on yours, fierce and hungry. Any feeling of exhaustion was gone and you were just as much in need for him, as he was for you. His hands covered the sides of your face, pulling you further into his mouth.

Your hands went to work freeing the archer of his clothes; fingers shaky and fumbling with the buckle of his belt. When it finally came free, you slunk down his body, pulling Daryl's pants and boxes down the floor.

The instant his cock was free, you took it with both hands and brought it to your lips, teasing him with your tongue and teeth. Daryl reached for you, trying to pull you up to him, but you resisted. Looking up at him, you smirked and pushed both his hands back against the wall, taking him back into your mouth as deeply as you could.

"Fuck Y/N," Daryl moaned, head back against the wall. You let his cock slide back and forth across your lips, and with each pass your teeth slightly grazed the tip, making him pant in deep, breathy waves. Taking one deeper plunge with your mouth, Daryl had all he could take and broke free of your restraint.

He bent down and yanked you up, so your face was now level with his. Keeping his eyes on yours, he roughly ripped your underwear off and quickly discarded his shirt and vest to the far corner of your cell. He caught you smiling at him, and after flashing you a playful smirk, his face went serious.

"You think it's funny?" he grunted, stalking you like you were his prey. "Get me all fuckin' hard, then don't let me touch you? That ain't right…"

The lantern light played off him in darkness, highlighting the broadness of his shoulders, his hair wild around his face. Daryl's eyes were completely obscured to you now, but you didn't need to see them to know what he wanted. The room was filled with the expectation of what he wanted, of what he demanded.

In an instant, he was on you, leaving you unable to object even if you wanted too. Daryl's left hand snaked around your neck, drawing you into him so his mouth was right on your ear. His body pressed against yours, as his other hand went to the warm wetness that was now spilling down your inner thighs just at the anticipation of his touch.

His fingers went right into your folds, finding your clit and attacking it with a furious need. Opening your mouth, a small moan escaped, and you felt his breath on your neck.

"Shhh…" he said in a rough whisper. "Don't… don't make a sound. We got neighbors…" His mouth found your neck and as he devoured you there, his hand did the same down below. Within minutes of plunging his fingers inside you, you could feel your orgasm building. Rocking back and forth on his hand, Daryl took immense pleasure in watching you. When you felt your resolve crack, his mouth covered yours to absorb the scream of pleasure that dared to escape.

Barely letting you catch your breath, Daryl was pushing you onto the bed and greedily taking your breasts into his hands and mouth. The feeling of his mouth on your skin was intense and yet exactly what you needed. Even though you had just climaxed, there was no doubt he would bring you there again, but it would be under your terms this time.

You pushed Daryl off you, so he was on his back, hair fell back from his face, his eyes clearly poised on your breasts. He licked his lips and tried to pull you closer.

"Not yet," you said and straddled him, hovering over the tip of his cock, letting your slickness tease him. Daryl's hands grabbed at your hips, his desperation was growing to have you.

"Y/N… don't tease me," his face was serious and slightly bruiting. "I need you…" Sitting up, Daryl pulled you down so he slid into you with ease.

A gasp left your lips, much louder than you intended. The feeling of Daryl inside you, with his arms wrapped around your body was enough to make you not care who heard what anymore. He laid back again, keeping his hands on your hips and grinding you on top of him. He too forgot that you weren't at the cabin, and the faster you moved, the more he was lost.

Daryl closed his eyes and gripped you tighter. Knowing he was so close to orgasm, you moved your hips side to side and back and forth until you could see he couldn't hold out any longer. As he exploded into you, Daryl pulled you down and you kissed him hard. His teeth were biting at your lip as his cock shook inside you, and when you heard your name leave his lips in a breathless whisper, you smiled.

Falling to the bed next to him, he immediately rolled to one side and drew you in. He was sweaty and the heat radiating off him was almost smothering, but you didn't care. Leaving a trail of lingering kisses across his collarbone, you finally brought your eyes up to his.

"Fuck," Daryl growled while brushing the hair from your eyes, "what the hell you done to me girl?"

You couldn't help but laugh. You tucked your head into his chest and let your fingers trace the lines of the tattoo across his breast.

"Y/N?" he spoke again, this voice softer.

"Mhmmm?" you responded. The exhaustion was creeping back in and you could feel yourself drifting off to sleep.

Daryl pulled the covers up over both of you and wrapped both arms around you.

"I just need you to know…" Daryl turned his head so his face was buried in your hair. Taking a deep breath of your scent, he finally said what you had been wanting to tell him too, "I need you to know that I love you."

You looked up at him, eyes heavy with sleep but full of love for him too.

"I love you too, Daryl. More than I ever thought possible," you whispered in confession, then kissed him. Even though you were both on the brink of sleep, the kiss deepened and carried on as a physical expression of the words you just shared, well into the night.


	12. Chapter 12

p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"A gunshot rang out, echoing through the walls of the prison. A second… third… sitting up with a start, you looked around trying to figure out what was happening. Alone in the cell, you looked around for your clothes and threw on what had been discarded the night before./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"Daryl, as well as his crossbow, were already gone, which really wasn't all that odd. Plenty of times he would be up and gone before you, but today was different./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"In the distance, there was screaming now… another gunshot. You just pulled on your last boot when Daryl came flying by the cell and slammed the bars shut./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Stay here!" he shouted and ran back towards the shots./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Daryl!" you called after him, but he didn't stop. You pressed your hands and face against the bars to try and see what was happening./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"What felt like an hour later, but maybe had only been half that Daryl came back and unlocked the cell. His clothes splattered in blood, his crossbow hanging from his hand and his head hung low./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Are you okay? What happened? Are you hurt?" your hands were frantic on him checking for wounds. One of his large hands covered yours and pressed them into his chest./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""I'm fine," he said and sighed. "People… they got sick and died. Turned in the night."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""What?" you were shaken, unable to move. "Sick? Sick how?" your mind flashed to the exhaustion and uneasy stomach you've had./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""I dunno, doc said its some kinda flu," he paused, "but…we just lost a lot of 'em."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"You hugged him tightly, understanding how much he had come to care for everyone living at the prison./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""What can I do?" you wanted to help him, but couldn't help but feel worried about your own health./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""I want you to go see the doc," he said as if reading your thoughts. "I know you've been tired, and it's probably nothin', but I'd feel better knowin' you were alright." He tucked a hair behind your ear and cupped your face in his palm./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Ok, I'll go today."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Good," he kissed you gently and hugged you closer./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""So, are there people still sick? What about Maggie and Glenn?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""They're fine far's I know. I don't know 'bout the others yet. Council's meetin' soon to try and figure it all out. Just stay outta D Block, ok? Stay outside or stay in here. I'll ask the doc to come see ya."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Alright," you complied. You knew he was gearing up to go out again, especially if more people were sick. The last thing you wanted to do was give him more cause to worry. The best way you could help was to allow him to do what he needed to while keeping yourself out of harm's way./p 


	13. Chapter 13

p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"Daryl left for the council meeting and the doc arrived at your bunk a short time later. After explaining about how tired you've been, he gave you a quick exam./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Honestly Y/N, I don't see any sign of this bug. Your breathing sounds good, you don't have a temp… I see no indications that its anything other than a simple case of exhaustion. You've been out in the heat, right?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"You nodded, feeling a great sense of relief./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Ok, well I am going to assume it's that," he said standing from your bunk and placing his tools back in his bag, "…I mean, unless your pregnant…" he winced at his lack of subtlety and offered you an apologetic smile./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Pregnant?" you repeated more to yourself than to him./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""I mean, I assume it's a possibility…" he asked looking to you for confirmation and you nodded slowly. "Ok, so you might want to take a test. Actually," he reopened his bag and rifled through to the bottom, "I have one handy. Took them from the supply closet for another patient, as luck would have it, still have one in my bag."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"He handed the box to you, the words 'Pregnancy Testing Kit' loomed large in bold blue betters. You swallowed deeply and suddenly knew that you didn't need the test. You'd been pregnant twice before and the signs were the same every time. How you'd missed the omens you didn't know. Maybe it had been that you were too wrapped up in Daryl or the new life you were making for yourself at the prison. Either way, you hadn't been paying attention, and now it was too late./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"Taking the box, you smiled at him and slipped it under the pillow./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Thanks again, doc," you stood as he was leaving, but the second he left you crashed back down to the bunk./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"Tears threatened to fall, but you sat up straight and pushed them back knowing that you couldn't fall apart. Taking a deep breath, you got up forgetting the test on the bed and headed out to find Maggie./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"xxx/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"The courtyard was void of people save for Glenn and Hershel. You asked them if they had seen Maggie, and they pointed you towards the water pump near the gardens. Making your way down there, you saw Rick and Carol out beyond the fences working the hoses, while Maggie tried to get the pump generating a steady flow of water./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Want some help?" you asked as you caught up with her./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Hey," she said pausing to look up at you. Maggie looked out at Rick and Carol and saw them coming back in through the hole in the fences. She gave the pump another few goes and water began flowing freely./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Problems out there?" you asked pointing to where Carol and Rick were./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Nah, just muddy. They got it," she continued to fill up the bucket and turned off the pump when she was done. "I gotta get this up to the doc, more people are turnin' up sick. I think they're trying to get them into A block, but…"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""What, Maggie?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""I don't know. I just got a feelin' this is gonna get worse before it gets better," she seemed lost in thought, and finally came back around and seemed to see you standing in front of her for the first time./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Oh, hey… did you get some sleep? See the doc?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""I did," you said, and grabbed the other end of the bucket she was picking up./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""And?" she asked as the two of you started walking up the hill towards Glenn and Hershel./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""And, I'm fine. I don't have it. I'm not sick," you answered but kept your eyes cast towards the ground./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"Maggie stopped and placed the bucket on the ground. Not wanting it to spill, you set your side down too and finally met her gaze./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""What?" you said, trying to act aloof./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""What did he say then?" Maggie raised her eye brows at you and you knew you had to tell her. Maggie Greene was incredibly persistent, sometimes to the point of being obnoxious. But as your best and oldest friend, you felt you needed to be honest./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""He thinks I'm pregnant," you sighed and steadied yourself against the wave of nausea that rolled over you./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""What?!" her eyes were big, a grin threatening on her lips. "Seriously?!"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Shhh, Maggie… please," you begged her, "I haven't taken the test yet. But…"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""But you are. You know you are!" she playfully smacked your shoulder, but when she noticed the expression you carried, she toned down her response. "You're thinkin' bout the boys, right?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"You nodded. The boys… your boys that had been lost at the beginning of it all. The ones that were taken from you because the last man you trusted had been misguided./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""Oh, Y/N. I'm sorry, I know this can't be easy." Maggie moved to hug you, but you put up a hand to stop her./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;""It's ok, really. Right now, there are more important things happenin'. This can wait… long as I know I don't have that," you pointed towards the prison, "I'm ok."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"Maggie nodded and picked up the bucket. She refused to let you help her carry the rest of the way, and you were suddenly overwhelmed with gratitude that you had Maggie in your corner. /p 


	14. Chapter 14

"Be safe, and stay with Maggie, ok? Be sure to keep a knife and gun on ya, you don't wanna get caught and not be ready," Daryl was nervous. He was never usually nervous leaving for a run, but this was different. His group was going out far for meds, and there was no way of knowing what kind of trouble they were walking into or when they would be back.

Michonne and Bob were loading the car, while you and Daryl said your goodbyes. Tyrese finally arrived and they were ready to go.

"I know, I got this… Maggie and I got this. Plus, Glenn, Carol and Rick are here, so is Hershel. Just go get what they need and get back," your hand absentmindedly went to your stomach. Daryl didn't notice, too fixated on making sure you were prepared to defend yourself.

"Ready Daryl?" Tyrese asked before getting in the car.

"Yeah, one second," Daryl turned aback to you. "Remember what I said last night?"

You smiled and nodded, "How could I forget?"

"I meant it," he said, lowering his voice and leaning his forehead against yours. "I'll see you soon and show you how much." Daryl leaned in and kissed you, and an instant later, he was gone.

Maggie's earlier prediction of things getting worse before they got better was far too accurate. Soon after Daryl and the group left, Glenn was put into quarantine as well and Maggie was close to breaking down. The walkers had been piling on the fences worse than usual, and all the work the guys had done to reinforce them over the last few weeks was coming undone.

Rick and Carol left to get what they could in neighboring communities, while you and Maggie were left to clear the fences and to keep the water flowing. It was dusk the next day when the fences finally started to cave. You, Maggie, Rick and Carl took out as many walkers as possible, until the gunshots started from inside.

Rick told Maggie to go and check on Glenn and Hershel, while the rest of you defended the prison against the walkers. For what felt like an eternity, you were firing ahead at the dead that were zeroing in on you. Moments after the last walkers fell, Carl was shouting for Rick as the headlights from Daryl's group illuminated the front gates.

Seeing the damage at the fences, as soon as the van was put in park, Daryl and Michonne ran over to help get it back up, while Bob and Tyrese brought the meds in. Working through the night until almost dawn, you all worked together to repair the damage to the fences and get meds to those who were sick.

When the sky started showing signs of life, Daryl put his arm around you and walked you back to your bunk. Once inside, he held onto you in a tight embrace for more than a few minutes. He didn't say a word, and you knew that the journey to get the meds must have been more difficult than they had let on.

Feeling your knees sway a little, you sat down on your bed and laid back. Daryl sat down next to you and slowly slipped off your boots one by one.

"What are you doin'?" you asked and sat up, resting your chin on his shoulder and wrapping one arm around his back.

"Just tryin' to get ya comfortable," he said before getting up and changing himself. Daryl went into your drawer and grabbed you a clean change of clothes. You watched in wonder as he went about silently stripping you out of your muddy clothes and into helping you into your favorite pair of sweatpants and tank top. He was sweet and gentle, and as much as his touch was always exciting to you, this time it was much more loving than it was passionate.

When Daryl was done, he laid down on the bed and pulled you into him. You were about to work up the courage to telling him what the doc said, but your lapse in memory about the pregnancy test hidden under the pillow outed you first.

"What the hell?" Daryl grumbled picking his head up off pillow and slipping the long box out from beneath it.

"Oh shit," you gasped and closed your eyes in regret at your forgetfulness.

Daryl looked at the box, then back at you and sat up further on the bed. He saw it wasn't open and handed it to you.

"Guessin' this is yours?" his tone was even and you couldn't read his expression which was immediately unnerving.

"Daryl, I… the doc gave it to me right before you left. I didn't want to… everything just happened so fast, and with you gone…" you were rambling, nervous how he was going to react to everything.

"You didn't take it yet," he said, his eyes holding yours without wavering.

"No. I left it here and planned on doing it later in the day, but then…"

"Shit happened," he said with a nod, "Alright. Well, let's do it now." His voice was still as unfluctuating and you were starting to worry that this news may just be the straw that broke the camel's back considering how the last few days had gone.

"How are you so calm about this?" you asked with amazement and a hint of panic in your voice.

Daryl rubbed a hand down the length of your body, pausing his over the lower part of your stomach. He seemed lost in thought, and you let him stay there, wanting him to have the time he needed to really think about what it all meant.

"I gotta be," he said quietly. "I told you last night, I love you, Y/N. And, if this is real.. then I gotta be ok. Ain't a choice anymore. Just how it's gotta be."

"I was gonna take it… I am gonna take it… but I think I already know the answer," your voice betrayed the fear hiding inside you.

"So, why wait any longer?" Daryl got up off the bed and offered a hand to you to help you up. Taking in a deep breath you walked down the corridor to the bathrooms, found an open one and took the pregnancy test.

Daryl insisted on waiting right outside the bathroom entry. When you walked out, he was leaning against the wall chewing nervously on his thumb, eyes transfixed on doorway. The second he saw you, he stood at attention, staring at your face with his brows raised in question.

"Congrats, dad," you said with a hesitant smile, holding up the positive test.

Before you could say another word, Daryl had you wrapped up in his arms, his face buried in your neck. He held you like that for a couple minutes, and when he finally let you go, is face was serious and thoughtful.

"You ok? I mean, I know you don't talk about it much, but you had kids before…"

You placed a hand on his chest to stop him.

"Those boys were my life," you swallowed hard at the memory of them, but did your best to continue. "That was a different lifetime ago. After they were gone, I resigned myself to the idea of never having that again. I also had also told myself I would never let anyone in again, and yet… here we are," you smiled at him and felt an overwhelming pull of love for the man standing in front of you. "But, knowing that you're here, and that you're going to do this with me, I kinda feel like we can do anything. Including this chaos."

You placed a hand on your stomach, and he covered it with his. You stayed that way until he felt your stomach rumble from hunger and insisted on getting you something to eat. Within minutes you were sitting together on the bunk of your cell, munching on crackers while Daryl laid his head on your lap and you talked about the possibilities of what life would be like after adding another Dixon to the world.

As you both finally drifted off to sleep, wrapped up in each other, the sun was rising outside. You smiled and enjoyed the last truly peaceful moment you would have with Daryl for a very long time.


	15. Chapter 15

Deja vu hit hard later that afternoon. For the second time in a matter of days, you were woken by the awful sounds of combat. This time Daryl was still next to you, both of you sitting up at the enormous explosion that shook the walls of the prison.

He flew into action and was about to slam the cell door shut on you again but you stopped him.

"No! Do not lock me in here again Daryl Dixon!" you shouted at him. "You're not leaving me in here again to worry about you. I'm going with you!" Daryl grunted and nodded once, reaching out for your hand and pulling you through the corridors until you were outside.

When you finally made it out, you saw smoke pouring from tower three. Over near the gates to the courtyard, Maggie, Beth, Rick, Carl and many of the others were gathered looking out beyond the fences to a gathering of cars, trucks and a tank.

You gasped at the site of them, Daryl squeezed your hand and pulled you behind the cover of the maintenance shed.

Daryl quietly and carefully pulled the rolltainer of weapons closer, handing you one, as well as Maggie and Beth and several others. You tried to peek around the corner and could only really make out a half moon of vehicles. Rick was slowly walking down towards the small army and you felt a sick feeling in your stomach. You were sure it was because of what was about to happen and not the baby growing in there.

"Hey," Daryl whispered and touched your arm. "Listen to me…" he took your chin between his fingers so your attention was on him. "Listen… take this, go get Glenn and get to the car that's hidden out behind the tombs. Get to the cabin, I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Daryl..." you started, panic washing over you at the thought of separating from him.

"Look, this ain't gonna end well, not with this prick. Please, I need you to not be here. Glenn needs you," Daryl pleaded with you, but you looked to Maggie and saw her face ablaze in panic. The men by the fence now had Hershel and Michonne on their knees, hands behind their back.

You heard Beth cried out, and Daryl saw it now too.

"Y/N! Please… go, sweetheart… you can't be here," Daryl begged you.

"O… okay… I'll go get Glenn. I'll get us there," you were breathing heavy, but nodded to yourself, trying to convince yourself that you could do it. Looking back to Maggie one last time, then back to Daryl, you pushed back the tears that were burning at the corners of your eyes. "I love you…"

"I love you too… now go, please," he looked beyond you down the path to where Rick was now trying to reason with the invaders. He kissed you fierce but quickly and you took off to find Glenn.

Chapter 21

You ran as fast as you could into A block to find Glenn. You found him in a cell, sitting up on the bed, his head hanging between his knees.

"Glenn!" you said as you burst through the bars, "Glenn! Get up, please!"

He slowly lifted his head, "Y/N? What's… where's Maggie?"

His color was returning thanks to the IV of meds Bob set him up with last night, but he was still tired and weak.

"Glenn, the prison's being attacked, we have to go… Daryl and Maggie sent me to get you," you tried lifting him up off the bed, but his knees gave way at first. Stealing himself against you, Glenn got up and start walking.

"My bunk… we gotta stop there quick," he said insistently. Getting him there as quickly as you could, Glenn fell on his bed the second you got inside the cell.

"Glenn, tell me what you need and I'll grab it, but we gotta go!"

"I got it," he said, rolling off the bunk.

That's when the second explosion happened, knocking you both back on the ground and blacking out.

The light of the day was fading by the time you came back to consciousness. Glenn was starting to stir as well, and you realized how quiet it had gotten. There were no more sounds of machine guns or shouting. You could smell smoke strongly as sharp pain shot across your head when you tried lifting it.

"You ok?" Glenn asked, trying to stand. He reached a hand down and helped you up. "You're bleeding," he grabbed a rag from the shelf by the bed and placed it on your forehead.

"Glenn, we gotta get out of here. Daryl and Maggie are waiting for us," you pleaded with him, and saw that he seemed to get the severity of the situation now.

In a matter of fifteen minutes, you and Glenn had grabbed some essential gear and ventured out of the prison to try and get to the cabin.

There was enough light left for you to find your way to the path behind the tombs and out to the road where the car was supposed to be. When you breached the forest, and made it to the road, the car was gone.

"Shit!" you looked around and saw Glenn slumped down on the ground. "Glenn… Glenn!"

"I'm okay Y/N… I just need to catch my breath," Glenn said in heavy breaths. The sounds of rustling in the woods made you both sit up and be on alert. A half-dozen walkers were oozing out of the trees. You unsheathed your knife, readying yourself to act.

Glenn was trying his best to get to his feet to help with the walkers, but the flu was still taking its toll on him. He managed to get one walker down before falling backwards. You were so focused on getting the two of you out of harm's way, the sound of the truck approaching fell on deaf ears.

Just as you were removing the knife from the last walker's skull, you heard the air brakes setting and you whipped around startled.

Three people emerged from the military caravan carrying heavy artillery guns. Two men and a woman stood before you, looking back and forth between you and Glenn. The tall, red-haired, mustached man in front had a wide grin on his face and relaxed his weapon when he saw the state you were both in.

"Well, what do we have here? Seems you folks could use a bit of help," he bellowed, turning back to his companions with a grin. The woman rolled her eyes and shook her head at him. The other man stood uncomfortably still, surveying the area nervously.

"Really? You wanna help? Where the fuck were you five minutes ago when the dead were comin' at us?" you barked, still catching your breath and trying to not vomit up the last of your crackers.

"Ah, I see we have a refined young lady here. You kiss your daddy with that mouth?" He smirked with a raised brow.

You were prepared to come back at him with another smart-ass remark, but your body finally gave in to the crashing waves of exhaustion and pain seeping into every muscle. Falling to your knees, you heard Glenn call your name before once again losing consciousness.


	16. Chapter 16

Daryl cut through the forest quickly, crossbow was slung over his shoulder, Beth following closely behind him. Things had gone south quickly at the prison, and when it was time to flee, he mistakenly followed Beth into the woods, going the wrong direction from the cabin. By the time he could change their course, the day's light was faded and he was losing the trail they'd made.

"Daryl," Beth chirped from behind him. When he didn't answer, she tried again until he finally came to a stop.

"What?" he spat at her, more harshly than he had intended, but he had to get to the cabin. It was all his mind could focus on.

"Maybe we should stop. Set up a camp for the night," she suggested and slowed her walk. Scanning the area, she spotted a small clearing beyond a line of trees and pointed. "There. Let's head over that way."

"No," he said roughly and continued the trail.

"Daryl… we gotta stop. It's gonna be dark soon."

"No," he growled, this time causing her to take pause.

"We gotta try and find Maggie… I know she got out, she had too," Beth said more to herself than Daryl, but certainly loud enough for him to hear.

"Maggie? Yeah, I wanna find Maggie. I wanna find Glenn, and Rick, Michonne, Carol; all of 'em," Daryl said narrowing his gaze on Beth, taking a few steps towards her. "But, more than anythin', I _need_ to find Y/N."

He turned from her and went back in the direction he had been going. He knew they were close to the area where the car had been hidden, he just needed a little more light to find the right path.

"I'm sure she's fine Daryl, she'll turn up," she said, her voice thick with fake concern. Then, more to herself, "...she always seems to turn up fine…"

Daryl paused again and tried to keep his rising anger under control. There had been far too many close calls in the last week, and now being out here separated from Y/N was about the last thing he could deal with, much less hearing Beth badmouthing her.

"We're gonna find them all Beth," he finally said, "we gotta."

They walked in silence for some time, until they finally emerged from the edge of the woods and onto the road.

"We should go back around to the prison," Beth said and started walking to the east. "Maybe Maggie and Glenn are still back there…"

"No, we're going to the cabin," Daryl said and turned in the other direction.

"I ain't goin' to your stupid sex cabin, Daryl!" Beth could hear how ridiculous she sounded, but didn't care. "Not just so you can go find some girl…"

"That _girl_ I'm lookin' for ain't just _some_ girl Beth!" Daryl snarled at her, "She's mine… just like Maggie is Glenn's. But you wouldn't get that! You could barely cry a tear when your own damn boyfriend died!"

Beth froze in shock. Daryl had never spoken to her that way before even in his most volatile state.

"You don't gotta be mean," she said, her voice smaller now.

"You don't gotta be a bitch," he responded matter-of-factly and turned back towards his destination.

"I just don't get one thing," Beth called after him, quickening her pace to try and catch up. When she was finally side by side with him, she continued, "Why her? I mean, with everyone else around… why did it have to be her?" her voice was near whining.

Daryl didn't slow his pace or even turn his head in acknowledgement. His eyes focused on the road laid out before him, he said through gritted teeth, "Cause, that's just the way it is Beth."

"That's stupid," she said, shaking her head. "Y/N, the girl I remember from before, was never anythin' but trouble. She had this way of makin' nice guys turn into jerks," she cast a glance at Daryl who was still focused on the road, "This one time…"

Daryl finally stopped and looked at her. The last bit of light was trickling through the trees and she could see the anger residing in his eyes.

"Enough. I get it, alright. Ain't no love lost between ya. But, it's none of your business. Wasn't back then and it ain't now. You don't want to come, fine. Stay here, go back… I don't care. I don't want ya hurt Beth, but finding her… that's my priority."

Daryl stayed as calm as he could. He felt an anxious sigh fill his chest and he swallowed hard. "Y/N is pregnant Beth. I gotta find her… I gotta find them both."

"Daryl…"

"No, I'm done with this. Maybe one day when you decide it's time to grow up, you'll see the world ain't what you think it is. You don't always get to pick, Beth. You can't just pick the people you love. You just find them and then that's it. What's stupid, is trying to put any reason to it. So, stay or go. But I am done with this."

Daryl stormed ahead of her and didn't stop walking until he hit the road that lead to where Y/N was supposed to be waiting for him.

By the time Daryl and Beth arrived at the long winding lane that lead to the hideaway, it was completely dark. The car that was hidden out beyond the tombs was sitting skewed in the driveway about halfway down to the cabin. Breaking on into a sprint, Daryl felt a mixed sense of relief and foreboding. Getting closer, he slowed down and cautiously approached the porch, his crossbow now drawn and ready.

Beth hung back a little watching as Daryl neared the door. The moment his hand went on the door knob, a clicking sound of a gun and a booming voice caused him to freeze.

"Well hello, stranger!" the man said from a safe distance, but close enough to be heard. Daryl slowly turned around and saw a man with his arm around Beth's neck and shoulders, a gun at her temple. Behind them, five more bodies emerged from the shadows with guns drawn all pointing at Beth. Daryl lowered his crossbow and heard the door open behind him; the barrel of a shotgun pressed into the back of his shoulders.

"You may want to drop that bow, friend," the man near Beth hollered, "I've been looking for one just like that. Guess it's my lucky night! Eh, boys?"


	17. Chapter 17

The motion of the truck was what finally brought you around and back to life. Glenn was sitting next to you in the back of the caravan and helped you sit up.

"Where are we?" you asked, trying to ignore the pain in your head.

"Heading east I think. I told them where we needed to go. Abraham was a hard sell, but he finally agreed. I had to tell him though," Glenn smiled and motioned towards your belly.

"You know?" you asked, happy that someone was with you that knew your secret.

"Maggie told me right before the attack. She was so excited for you guys," he said and closed his eyes. He sighed and you knew he was thinking of her. "We have to find them."

"We will Glenn. We will," you took his hand in yours and used the other to bang on the rear window of the truck. "Hey! Stop the truck!"

"Oh, Abraham loves when you do that," Glenn rolled his eyes and shook his head. "He made sure to let me know when I did it several times. He's not exactly Mr. Congeniality."

When the truck stopped, you and Glenn made your way to the edge and hopped off. Grabbing the packs and guns you had, you waited for Abraham to exit the driver's side door.

"There a problem I wasn't made aware of?" he said bouncing down the steps. "As I understand it, you and your friend here need to be somewhere as of yesterday. So, what's with the pit stop?"

"You're going the wrong way," you said motioning to the road in front of you. "The place we need to go is that way," you pointed in the opposite direction. "Thanks for the ride, but we'll take it from here."

You started walking back towards the cabin and saw Glenn start to follow.

"Hey!" Abraham called to you. You stopped and turned, impatiently waiting for him to continue. "I am not going the wrong way. The way your friend here…"

"Glenn, his name is Glenn," you said getting agitated with the giant ginger.

"Glenn… As I told Glenn here, the way he wanted to go was no good. There was a pile up blocking the road. That's why we were diverted. Now, if you could just get back in the truck…"

"No, I'll walk this way, thanks," you were impatient to get to Daryl. You needed to know he was ok and didn't want him to worry while waiting for you.

"Y/N," Glenn called you softly, his hand on your elbow. "Let him take us. Trust me, I want to get to Maggie as badly as you want to get to Daryl. I'm certain she'll head there too. But, I'm still recovering and your pregnant. _And_ , Daryl would for real kill me if he knew I let you walk all that way when we had a perfectly safe ride."

You met Glenn's eyes and could see him pleading with you. Stubbornly, you wanted to walk just because you didn't like the man's attitude, but when he heard Glenn bring up your pregnancy again, you could see the man's face soften.

"Look, Y/N, is it?" Abraham started and when you didn't speak, he continued, "I get you need to find your man, and Glenn's wife. My associates here feel that we can detour from our mission north to get a lady who's with child to where she needs to be. But, I can't do that if said lady is going to be a royal pain in the nuts."

Sighing, you knew both Glenn and Abraham were right. "Fine," you said finally looking at Glenn. "But, I swear if there are any more detours, I will jump out and start walking."

"Fair enough," Abraham said, even managing a smile. "Besides, maybe once your little group is all hangin' round the campfire singing kumbaya again, I can convince you to take a ride up north with us."

"Man, now's not the time," Glenn said holding up a hand. "Maybe later. Can we just get moving, please?"

"You heard the man," Abraham called, "Let's roll!"

Chapter 24

Once you were within a mile of the road that lead to the cabin, you once again asked Abraham to stop the truck.

"What now?" he roared over the engine.

"We're here!" you shouted back, relieved when he finally killed the ignition.

"We are?" Glenn asked more than a little confused.

"Well, close enough," you said climbing down from the truck. "From here we go on foot."

"Why's that?" Abraham asked not without a hint of sarcasm.

"Because… that's the smart play," you said, raising your brows in question to Glenn.

"She's right. Our group, we just tend to error on the side of caution. We should go through the woods, make sure everything's safe before just walking up to the door."

"Well, I guess this is where we part ways then," Abraham said, pushing his shoulders back, puffing out his chest.

"No, not quite," the other man finally spoke.

"Eugene… don't," Abraham sounded as though he was chastising a small child.

"No. I will not accept that. No way I'm going to let you let a pregnant lady walk alone at night in the woods. We will go with her and make sure she arrives in one piece."

You threw a grateful glance at Eugene and looked back to Abraham. The frustration boiling beneath his skin made him nearly glow red in the moonlight.

"I will stand my ground, though I am fully aware that you could knock me on my ass with one swift punch. I am willing to take it if it means this lady and her baby get there," he said pointing towards the road.

"Fine." Abraham relented through gritted teeth.

"And," Eugene continued even though Abraham looked as though he was going to take him up on the offer of landing that punch, "you follow the lady's lead."

The girl who was standing on the fringe snorted a laugh, and you couldn't help but smile.

"Something funny Rosita?" Abraham asked without looking.

"Yeah, actually. This whole scene is pretty funny right now," she rolled her eyes at him again, but when he did turn to look at her, she flashed him a sultry smile before he brought his attention back around to you and Glenn.

"Alright, well apparently even though I am the one who is combat tested, I will be following your lead. So, let's get this little moonlight hike underway, shall we?"

Cutting through the woods, it didn't take much time to come within view of the car abandoned midway down the lane.

"Is that ours?" Glenn asked in a whisper. You nodded and tried to get a closer look at the car.

Off in the far distance, voices carried on the breeze. Just as you noticed the car had several bullet holes in the windshield, you all heard the sound of one gunshot.

Panic ran across both yours and Glenn's faces as you turned to each other at the sound of the blast. Moving quicker through the woods, you, Glenn, Abraham and Rosita raised your weapons and carefully closed in on the mysterious voices.

The light of the rising moon offered only a little bit of illumination, but you could make out several silhouetted figures standing around the porch of your hideaway, all of which were armed and alert.

Your heart jumped at the sight of Daryl and Beth tied up on the ground with about five armed individuals surrounding them. You wanted to burst through the trees, guns blazing, but a slight touch on your arm turned your attention towards Glenn, who was silently shaking his head at you. Moving a bit further back into the woods, you huddled together. The strangers who had brought you here were all you had to help, and even with them and Glenn, you were still out numbered.

"I have an idea…" you said nervously. "It's stupid, and probably will get someone killed but it's all I got."

You laid it out for them and waited for someone to object.

Glenn sat back on his feet after you explained and sighed. "There's gotta be a better way."

"If you got an idea, let's hear it," Abraham chimed in, "Lady's got a plan… a dangerous one, but still it's a plan. Eugene here demanded I follow her lead, so, I'm gonna follow her lead."

Shaking his head, Glenn stepped closer to you and placed a hand on your shoulder. "Looks good on you, you know," he said with a smile.

"What's that?" you asked half amused, half curious.

"Being a mama bear. Daryl and that baby… they're pretty damn lucky to have you." Glenn offered you a tired smile but it helped fan the flames of the fire burning in you. That was something you were definitely going to need going forward.

After that, no more was said and you went to work on getting into position to rescue Daryl and Beth.


	18. Chapter 18

div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Emerging from the woods, you purposely stepped on a twig to snap in, drawing the armed men's attention towards you and away from Daryl and Beth./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Whoa there," the man with salt and pepper hair said, walking towards you with his gun raised. "What we got here boys?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"You raised your hands and twisted your face to a look of fear./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""I'm just… oh my god. Sir, I'm sorry, I am just lost," you thickened your voice with as much panic as you could./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"At the sound of the conversation, Daryl looked up, his eyes wide over the gag covering his mouth. Beth also saw you and looked over to see Daryl's expression. When she looked back at you, her eyes were pleading for help./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Well ain't we just a lucky bunch of bastards tonight gents! Two beautiful young girls and one poor fucker who gets to watch!"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Turning to see the reactions and laughs of his friends, you took the opportunity to draw your weapon from the waistband of your sweatpants and point it at the closest of the men, pulling your trigger quickly and pointing at the next man before the first hit the ground./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Daryl recoiled in surprise, twisting in his restraints to try and get to you. The rest of the men pointed their weapons, but before they could aim and shoot at you, a gunshot from the perimeter of the woods took down one more of the men./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Now, gents…" you started, all fear washed from your face, "I'm gonna bet that you couldn't get a shot off, before one of my companions out there dropped two more of you."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"You moved slowly around the remaining men and closer to where Daryl and Beth sat./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""You have no idea how many of us are out there… Seems like you may be better off letting the house win this one."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"The man with salt and pepper hair watched you with the eyes of a hawk. He allowed a quick flicker of a glance over at Daryl and Beth seeming to weigh his options./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Maybe we can talk this out darlin'," he said, a snake-like grin spreading across his face./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""First of all, don't call me darlin'," you said aiming the gun at his head; a small snap of a twig behind you and Daryl's expression told you to turn and fire. As you did, the man that was about to jump you from behind had their head exploded by another gun shot from out in the woods./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Without warning, Maggie, Sasha and Bob emerged from the opposite side of the wood line, guns drawn and pointed at the gang of marauders./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"You drew in a deep breath, turned and smiled at the man. Behind him, Glenn, Abraham, Rosita and Eugene also emerged, weapons raised and ready to fire./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Secondly," you said, feeling exhausted, yet somehow exhilarated, "you shoulda run when you had the chance."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"As if on cue, Daryl was on his feet and knocking the man off his and onto the ground. Beth was up and running at one of the other one men nearby. Gun fire erupted for the second time that day, and this time there was no avoiding it. Both groups firing at the other, but in the end, the ones who were holding Daryl and Beth were the ones on the ground covered in blood./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"When the echoes of the shots finally died down throughout the trees, Glenn saw Maggie through the dust and smoke. Running to her, they grabbed onto the other for dear life. Maggie was laughing through her tears while covering Glenn's face in kisses./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Abraham and Rosita gave each other a weary smile, feeling as though they had done the right thing by staying. Looking around, Abe was surveying the damage when he spotted her laying on the ground./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Oh shit," he said kneeling where Beth lay on the ground./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Maggie's eyes traveled down to where Abraham knelt. The scream that left her body was otherworldly, and something you knew you'd never forget. Beth's eyes were closed, and blood poured from a hole in her sweater, right where her heart had been. Maggie fell to the ground, covering her little sister with her own body./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"You felt your knees give out and you were sinking down to the muddy ground. Rosita cut Daryl's hands free and in seconds, he was wrapping his arms around you, helping you back up./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"You could hear his voice as if through a tunnel, calling your name and trying to get your attention. Glenn was at Maggie's side, holding onto her while she grieved for her sister./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Daryl's hands were on your face, "Y/N… hey… look at me," his eyes flickered down to where Beth lay, but his hands never left your face. "Sweetheart, look at me…"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"You finally could look away from Beth's lifeless body and up to his face. Tears were falling and you didn't even try to stop them. Daryl's arms wrapped around you and turned your face into his chest./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Don't look baby… just don't look," he kissed your head and held you tightly. /p  
/div 


	19. Chapter 19

div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"The next day dawned just as Daryl and Glenn were laying Beth to rest in the ground. Abraham, Rosita and Eugene were cleaning up the remaining bodies, Bob and Sasha standing watch on the road, while you and Maggie sat on the porch swing hand in hand./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""I'm so sorry Maggie," you said squeezing her hand as you watched the men lower her body in and begin to cover her with dirt./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Me too," she mumbled solemnly, "I guess she's with daddy now."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Your head snapped around to look at her. You flashed back to the last time you saw Hershel, being forced to kneel on the ground where those people had attacked. Closing your eyes and swallowing deeply, you pulled Maggie closer to you, and she didn't resist./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Maggie, I don't get it, where did you guys come from? Last night, you just appeared…"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""No," her voice was completely flat. Your heart broke for her, and you wanted to take the question back, save for another time. But Maggie kept talking and explained how they'd ended up in the woods./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""We found the car, drove it here to meet up with everyone. Those men shot at us on the road. So we ditched the car and scattered into the woods, but kept watch in case y'all came."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"You nodded and squeezed her hand./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""You saved our lives Maggie."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Not all of you," she looked over to where Glenn was adding dirt on top of Beth's grave./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"There was nothing more you could say. You felt grateful for Daryl and Maggie being alive, but an underlying guilt for what was lost in the process./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"After it was done, you all sat around the cabin, quiet and unsure of your next move. Abraham and Rosita continued to exchange a wordless conversation about their mission, while the rest of you couldn't help but wonder where everyone else was./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Within the next hour, you heard voices traveling down the lane. Being on high alert, Daryl went out to the porch ready for yet another fight, but as the rest of your extended family traveled down the path together, Daryl felt his resolve finally give. You were at his side the second you saw him drop to the porch step, arm around his shoulder as silent tears fell in relief./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Not long after that reunion Abraham had mentioned, minus the singing of kumbaya, did he convince Rick and the rest to start the long haul north to D.C./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"As the group set foot to asphalt, Daryl touched your elbow to hold you back./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Still haven't had a chance to say hi," he drew you into him. His scent, and the familiar feeling of his body against yours felt heavenly. He leaned down to kiss you, his lips soft and welcoming to yours./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"His hand went to your stomach, and gently rubbed the place that your unborn child was growing. Daryl reluctantly released you, and his expression turned serious./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""You ever pull some shit like that again, and I'll kill ya myself," he warned partially in jest. "That was dumb sweetheart. I know why…"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""No, you don't. I know it was dumb, Daryl. And I feel responsible for Beth…" you cast a quick glance to be sure Maggie was out of ear shot. "But, I would have done anything to make sure you were safe. Because without you, there is no us. You," you paused trying to hold back the tears that wanted to fall. Being pregnant you felt like you were always on the verge, but this time it was the overwhelming feeling of love you had for Daryl and your baby./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""You could survive without me Daryl. You could… you could go on and continue your life. I don't know if I could do it without you. I am not as strong as Maggie, and I'm not as brave as you. If I didn't have the two of you, I wouldn't still be here."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Bullshit," he said, holding you at arm's length. "Look what you did. You got Glenn to safety, found people that are useful, saved my dumb ass from a bunch of assholes… YOU did that. No one else. You're just as strong as she is… just as brave as anyone. You think I fell in love with you just cause your beautiful? Or 'cause you know just how to get to me… ya know…" Despite the situation, his eyes covered you with the look of lust you'd come to know very well since getting together with him./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""I don't know, maybe…" you teased, and he pulled you into him./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""We gotta find a new place. That starts here with these people," he motioned to the group that was now getting far ahead of you. "But you were right when you said that together, we can do this. We can, we got them and we got us," he leaned down and kissed the lower part of your stomach. "And, we got her."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Her?" you asked, your eyes wide with surprise. "How do you know it's a her?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Mmm, I dunno. I just do," he hooked an arm around your shoulders and steered you towards whatever new destination lay ahead./p  
/div 


	20. Chapter 20

div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"EPILOGUE/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"A knock at the door brought your attention away from the cake recipe laying on the counter. You looked down and saw that you were covered in flour and other various ingredients, and sighed./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Oh well, when am I not a hot mess?" you asked yourself as you went to open the front door./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Hey!" Maggie said and she pushed past you with an arm load of supplies. "I think I got everythin'. How's the cake comin'?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Well, I am wearing more than I am actually baking," you smiled and took some of the items from her hands./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Are they here?" she asked, looking around the lower level of your home./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""No, they'll be back any second. Honestly, I have no idea where he took her," you untied your apron so it hung loose in front of you and went to the sink to wash your hands./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Maggie began rifling through the box of party supplies and began laying them out on the counter. The front door opened again and Daryl came through carrying your daughter on his hip./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Hey," he said to Maggie as he walked through the kitchen, "what the hell's all this?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Party supplies," she said without looking up./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Daryl rifled through the pink princess crowns and glitter caked cardboard ponies with the free hand that wasn't holding your toddler and shook his head. "She don't care about this stuff," he said tossing it back on the counter. "Now, you throw some camo in there, add a fishing pole, and she'd be all about it. Right munchkin?" He asked her and tickled her belly./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Ya daddy!" she giggled and you couldn't help but laugh./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Daryl placed her down on the ground and the girl bounced over to you, arms raised up in the air. "Momma, hold me," she said and you did as commanded./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Shelby," Maggie said reaching out to take her hand and smiling big, "You want a pretty party don't you? With ponies and princesses? We're gonna have it right out in the middle of town by the lake!"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Shelby looked back and forth between you and Maggie and shook her head./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Fishes!" she snickered and wiggled free from your arms./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""See, girl knows what she wants," Daryl said, leaning back against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""The girl is two and has no idea what she wants until her daddy tells her," you teased him./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Pfft," he waved a hand at you. "Right, and when this one comes, and has you wrapped around his finger, I don't wanna hear boo about it." Daryl wrapped an arm around you from behind, letting his hand rest on your slightly swollen belly, and leaving a kiss on your neck./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"The feeling of his lips on your neck triggered that need for more of him, and as hard as you tried to hide it in front of Maggie, you couldn't./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Ugh, you guys make me sick," Maggie groaned and rolled her eyes. "Hey, Shelby!" she called and went after your daughter. "C'mon baby, let's go find Uncle Glenn and see what he's got done for your princess party…" She flashed Daryl a spirited look and he just shook his head./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""You're a bad influence Greene…" he waged a finger at her./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Yeah, well, too bad. When our kid is born, you can take over their birthday party. For now, Auntie Maggie and Uncle Glenn are giving this one a princess party. Deal with it accordingly."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Maggie scooped up Shelby and they waved goodbye as they went off to find Glenn./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Daryl turned to you and finally noticed the mess that covered you head to toe./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""What happened to you?" he asked, a smirk playing on his lips./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Trying to bake your daughter a birthday cake, but as you can see, I'm failing."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"His eyes narrowed on you, and you saw a very familiar look blossom across his face. You laughed, but backed up until you were against the stove./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Now, listen here Dixon… we are in the mess we are in because you keep giving me that look…"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""And… so? Not like I can knock you up again," his hands were on you, and you suddenly forgot all about the cake, the party and everything else./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Daryl lifted you up so you were sitting on the counter and eye level with him. He put his hands on either side of you, palms down on the granite. Leaning in, his nose brushed against yours, his lips just a whisper away from yours./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""So, you tellin' me that you want me to just leave ya be. Especially when you are covered in all kinds of… what…" he leaned in a ran his tongue down the length of your neck. "… sugar?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"He moved to the other side of your neck and left small biting kisses, causing you to immediately feel a spring of warmth flow between your thighs./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Daryl…" a moaned escaped you. Suddenly the need for him was stronger than it had been in the years you'd been together and living happily in Alexandria. He knew what you wanted from him, and he was more than happy to oblige./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Wrapping your legs around his waist and your arms around his neck, Daryl carried you upstairs, placing you down in the bathroom. He turned on the shower, and stripped you down to nothing. He added his own clothes to the mix and stepped into the shower under the guise of helping you get clean./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"After, when you were both clinging to each other and catching your breath under the rain pf hot water, he kissed you deeply. When Daryl finally pulled away, he watched you thoughtfully through the soaking wet tendrils hanging across his face./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""What?" you asked, feeling suddenly embarrassed./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""I love you," he said quietly./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""I love you too," you smiled at him. Life was good and you were surrounded by family and friends, and head over heels in love with a man that thought you walked on water./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""I've been thinking… whatcha wanna call this one when he gets here?" Daryl's hand went to the small swell of your belly that was growing larger by the day./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""You're so sure it's a emhe/em this time?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Mmhmm… wanna bet?" He raised his eye brows playfully at you./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""No, I know better," you thought about it for a minute and looked up at him. "You let me name Shelby, I think you should pick this one."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"Daryl grew quiet and raised his face up for the water to cascade over his skin. He wiped the hair from his face and smiled./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Abraham," he answered quietly. "Still hard to believe he's gone, even after all this time. But without him, I may never have found you back then." His hand caressed the side of your face./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"You thought back to your fallen friend and felt a wave of sadness crashed down on you. Losing him that night had been terrible, but you'd all found a way to bounce back from the terror of the early days in your new home. Since ending the war and picking up the pieces, Alexandria had been the perfect place for you and Daryl to raise a family. You would never have arrived there, if not for the giant ginger who rescued you and Glenn off the side of the road./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""I think it's just about perfect," you smiled up at him./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;""Good," Daryl said and pulled you in again. "Abe it is."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 31.0pt 0in;"The rest of the day went off without a hitch and while you and your family celebrated your daughter's second birthday, Abe kicked in your belly for the first time as if a sign from above that all would finally be peaceful. /p  
/div 


End file.
